Two sides of the same coin
by jilnachtaugen
Summary: This was suppose to be a simple recovery mission. Even her, the black sheep and disgrace of the Shiota Clan of assassins, should've handled it easily. What do those mercenaries want with her? Stuck on the island because of a storm, Nagisa doesn't know what to do. But a certain red devil keeps showing up to help her...or so she thinks. Slight AU. Fem!Nagisa x Karma
1. Just a simple recovery mission?

**Hi AC fans (see what I did there? I'm hilarious!)! So yeah, I'm a big fan of this manga and this has been going on in my head for a while, so here you go! Hope you like it! This is a Fem!Nagisa x Karma story!**

 **Enjoy!**

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"Seriously, mom. Why did it have to be me?" Thought the bluenette for the gazillionth time today, as she sat at the bar, sipping her coke.

The club was on fire, people were either smoking... whatever they were smoking, drinking alcohol even though most weren't legally old enough to, or dancing on the dance floor with no particular style. Nagisa Shiota sighed again. She wasn't here because she wanted to be. Actually, she really didn't want to be here. She was suppose to spend the entire week by herself, on this small island's luxurious hotel tower (which was basically the only thing there was on that island). Most of the people here were kids of billionaires, politicians and even yakuza. Just the finest for mommy and daddy's little prince or princess. Most were between sixteen and twenty five, and probably didn't deserve any of that. The adults here? Only security, the staff, the owners and a few guests here on business. In other words, it was were rich kids were sent because their parents couldn't take care of them for summer vacation. But she had no right to judge. Kids don't get to choose their parents. She herself didn't ask to be the daughter of the head of one of the most powerful assassin's clan in modern day Japan. And to top it all of, she was the shame of that clan. Neither in school nor in the art of assassination had she ever reached her mother's expectations. Getting scolded and beaten almost everyday hadn't done anything. Usually, if you're not good enough, you get banned from the clan and get a normal life. But not for her. Why? Because she was the boss's daughter. And if she was going to be the failure, she would get the humiliation she deserved. She was the shame and failure, and according to her mother, she always will be. Her skills were enough for her to hold her own against bullies at school, but that was about it. And what do you get when you're the failure? You get to be the dog of the clan. Meaning, when you're not being used as practice target, you run errands for the boss and play messenger pigeon. Actually, until now, Nagisa had never been sent on a recovery mission.

" _Even you should be able to carry out such a simple task with ease."_ Her mom had said.

"Do I really have to wait the entire week for this guy to show up and give him the disk?" She said to herself.

The reason for that was because this guy had no idea when he would come. And worst of all, Nagisa had no clue what he looked like. So she had to wait for him to come to her. It really was a mission for a dog. Sighing once more, the blue haired girl finished her soda quickly and got off her chair to go back to her room. Once back in the luxurious hotel room all for herself, she let herself fall on her bed and stared at the ceiling.

"Looks like I'm gonna be errand girl for the rest of my life." Muttered the fifteen year old to herself.

She stood up again and walked over to one of the giant mirrors of the room. Her mom had actually been considerate enough to buy her new clothes (probably to make her blend in more though). But surprisingly enough, Nagisa actually liked her new outfit. The top was a cute black shirt with shoulder-less short sleeves, held by light pink spaghetti straps and with a nicely thighed ribbon over the left side of her chest . The short skirt was red and black with white triangle on the edge. Then black stockings that stopped above the knee and nice black ankle boots. For accessories, the boss had even bought her a red chocker with a silver ring and two matching thick red buckle bracelets on each wrists. As always, her hair was held in two pig tails, but for the sake of appearances, Nagisa had added ribbons the same color as the one on her shirt. The whole thing completely suited her slender figure. At least there were a couple benefits to being here. First, no boss /mother or clan members to beat her or verbally abuse her. Second, no useless training or extra lessons. Third, freedom to do whatever. But the last thing she wanted was to hang out with rich spoiled brats and get hit on by people who thought she was rich. For once, she wanted to be left alone. The air conditioning was not enough to cool her down.

"I guess I'll try going outside. At least no one will bother me there."

It was dark outside and midnight had passed some time ago. Nagisa took the elevator down and made her way to the lounge. There, a beautiful woman in a red dress was playing the piano and all the security guards that were suppose to keep watch were all gathered around the instrument, listening to the melody. The music was beautiful. The bluenette would have stayed and listened if she wasn't so hot. She felt like she was suffocating. The automatic door opened and the petite girl stepped out. She went around the tower hotel to get to the cliff side. The wind was blowing very strongly. Dark and ominous clouds were hovering above the island. It seemed like a huge storm was about to break out. None the less, Nagisa didn't want to go back inside just yet. She approached the edge of the cliff and observed the agitated sea. This sight and the strong wind somehow calmed her.

'It's funny how nature can reflect the inter state of someone. I only wish I could exteriorize like the weather.'

The girl sighed once more. A sad look came over her face and she looked at the ground. She didn't want to be here for another reason. It was because being here alone and with nothing worth doing, she would have time to think and she absolutely didn't want to. Thoughts about her life and misery would fill her head and she would start having darker thoughts and...she didn't know what she might do if that happened. Because she was sure she would cry. Feeling the tears coming to her eyes, the bluenette inhaled as much air as she possibly could and screamed from the top of her lungs as loud as she could towards the horizon, until she was completely out of breath. Then, a heavy rain started falling and thunder rumbled very closely before lightening finally struck. Nagisa ran back to the front door and entered before she got completely soaked. Once inside, she wiped the rain drops from her face. A security guard approached her.

"Excuse me, Miss. Were you just outside?" He asked.

"Yes I was. I took a little walk. I was kind of choking inside."

"May I ask where you were exactly?"

Why was a security guard asking those questions? "Next to the cliff. Why do you want to know?"

"Oh no reason. You shouldn't go outside anymore. The storm is going to get worse." He said quickly.

"Okay. Thank you for the warning."

The girl smiled at him before quickly walking away. Something was off. She didn't remember any of the security guards that were here when she stepped out. Like they'd all been swapped at once and replaced with the current ones. Nagisa took pride in her memory. It was one of the things she'd dedicated herself to train as much as she could, since she lacked the skill to make anything else progress.

'Now that I think about it, why was that lady even there? Guests aren't suppose to hang around this area. It almost sounds like a distraction. The guys from before were so hypnotized that they didn't even ask for my guest pass... That new guy was the weirdest. He didn't even ask for the pass either, even though I could have been an outsider. All he wanted to know was where I'd been.'

While thinking, Nagisa didn't realize where her legs were taking her. The petite girl's mind was too busy calculating. 'Distraction. Suspicious behavior. Sudden people swapping. Wrong place, wrong time. It almost seems like... they didn't want me to see something. That new guard was afraid that I did.'

She suddenly stopped and shook her head. 'Come on Nagisa. You're acting like mom. Completely paranoid and seeing plotting everywhere. Stop looking for trouble where there are none. Looks like the clan is rubbing off on me after all.'

Someone suddenly tapped her shoulder and brought back the daydreaming girl to reality. The guy was wearing a simple shirt and a cap. His grin was nothing short of creepy.

"How're you doin' shorty? Papa wants to buy you a drink, anything you want, it's on me."

'No way this guy is twenty.' Thought the girl. "Sorry, but I'm not even suppose to be here. I didn't realize that I walked into the club. I should probably go."

The guys snatched her wrist before she could walk away. "Don't be like that. If you're such an airhead, a cute girl like you shouldn't be alone in this place. There are some pretty bad guys here. Why don't you stay with me for a bit? I'll protect you."

His breath stank of alcohol, which made Nagisa want to hold her breath. She gave him a nervous smile. "I-I should really go... maybe some other time..."

She twisted and yanked her arm free (one of the few self-defense skills she'd actually learned) and quickly paced away. She walked out of the club and into the hallway, only to be followed by the drunken kid.

"Come on babe. I'm tellin' you, there are scary people here."

'Somehow, I get the impression that this guy's parents aren't exactly in the legal business.' She thought. "It's very nice of you, but I can take care of myself really." Continued the bluenette without stopping.

That's when she bumped into someone, who turned out to be none other than the security guard from before. Two other men dressed similarly were with him.

"I'm sorry, miss but could you please come with us? We just need to ask you a couple more questions. Nothing major, I promise."

This guy wasn't convincing at all. Was it a coincidence that he was here? The bluenette didn't think so. Something really was off. But then again, it was a good way to ditch her stalker. She turned around and smiled at the guy.

"Sorry, but I have to go with them. We'll talk some other time okay?"

"Seriously? We didn't even start talking..." he said, disappointed.

"Another time, alright? Bye."

The three men escorted Nagisa back to the restricted lounge. One was walking in front and the two others on each side. She started feeling nervous.

'That's how you escort a prisoner, not a guest.'

The men were as silent as tombstones. They led her past the the lounge and into a small hallway where the elevator for special guests was. No one else was allowed to take it, not even the normal staff. It led directly to the sixtieth floor and above. So why were the guards making her take it?

"Hum, excuse me sir? Why are we taking this elevator?"

"Don't worry about it."

"I'm not so sure we should..." She said as she took a step back.

One of the guards roughly grabbed her arm to keep her from going any further.

"What're you..."

"Be nice and quiet, and nothing will happen to you."

'Definitely not normal security staff.' Thought the bluenette.

With a quick move, she rib jammed the guy holding her and sent her elbow flying in the other one's stomach. Those were basic defense move, but that was about all she could do against trained mercenaries (which those guys strongly seemed to be). Before the third one could react, Nagisa dashed out of the elevator and into the dark hallway.

"Quick! Get her!"

Nagisa knew that she wasn't fast enough to get away from them. She had to find a place to hide. Except that she couldn't enter any of the guest rooms without the right electronic key. She was desperately trying to think of a way to hide as she heard them get closer, when something suddenly caught her arm and pulled her inside a dark room. A hand was placed in front of her mouth before she could say anything and another arm was holding her around the shoulders. Whoever was holding her was a man. She could feel his torso pressed against her back.

"If you're not quiet, they'll find us."

That person's voice was so... joyful. It was weird, but Nagisa stopped struggling and focused on the footsteps of the guards passing in the hallway.

"Damn it! Where'd she go?"

"We have to find her before she says anything. No more bullshit. If you see her, you shoot her."

"Alright. Let's keep looking."

'Shoot me? They want to kill me? Whatever they think I've seen, it can't be good at all.'

"Looks like they're gone." The guy let her go and opened the door. Light got in, and Nagisa finally saw him. He was about a head taller than her. He had fire red hair and yellow mischievous eyes. A smirk was decorating his face. This guy smelled like trouble miles away. He turned to her.

"So, miss shorty. Why were the security guards after you? Did you do something bad?"

"Uh, thanks for helping me. I really appreciate it." She said bowing down quickly.

"You didn't answer my question."

"Uhm, well..." 'I don't know if I can trust this guy. Its better to play it safe.' "I just wanted to try smoking once, I didn't know it was drugs, honest. The guy who gave it to me said it was safe, so..."

He snickered. "You're good at playing dumb. It's fine if you don't wanna tell me." He suddenly moved and Nagisa found herself, backed up against the wall. The red haired boy was leaning on his arm pressed against the wall and looking down at her, with that smirk never leaving his face. Nagisa looked up in confusion. His eyes were those of a wolf on it's prey. Pride was written all over his face. Nagisa felt like a mice in front of a lion.

"What's the matter? You scared of me? I don't bite. Well, not unless I want to at least."

'What does that mean? This guy is scary. He looks like he could eat me on the spot. My heart's beating so fast, but why? I've been in life threatening scenario before. Why am I feeling worse now?'

"Say?" He asked leaning closer, his hair almost touching the short girl's face. "Would you let me take a bite if I asked nicely?"

"Well... I, huh..." Was all that the bluenette manage to say. 'Who is this guy? He doesn't strike me as to being someone who'd help out anyone on a whim. He's just a kid but he doesn't look like he was scared of these guys. That's definitely the profile of a troublemaker. And not the school bully kind of troublemaker.'

He chuckled. "You know, you're interesting. Anyone who comes this close to me usually piss themselves. You're not really who you appear to be, are you shorty?"

"W-what do you mean?"

"Still playing dumb? Oh, well. You're cute so I'll let it slide." He took his arm back and backed off putting his hands in his pockets. "Piece of advice though. You might want to find another place than your room to sleep tonight. See you around, shorty."

He started walking in the direction the guards had taken. The short girl looked at him walking away confused. 'Weird guy. What did he mean by that? And what's that bloodlust I was sensing? I should probably head back somewhere with a bunch of people.'

Despite herself, Nagisa returned to the club floor and went to sit in a corner with a mint soda. 'Deja vu. I wish this guy would just show up already so I can leave this place.' The bluenette kept sipping her drink while staring into space. The red haired guy kept coming back in her mind and she found herself looking for him amongst the people in the club. There was something off about him. He acted really prideful and gave off dangerous vibes, but it was like all of it was there to conceal something more. Although Nagisa wasn't sure of what it was exactly, she was certain there was more to this guy. Then there were those weird security guards. What were they so afraid that she saw outside? It's not like it was a big secret that Yakuza or other corrupt politicians came to this place to close off deals and shady stuff like that. Maybe one was taking place while she was getting some air? The bluenette sighed again. 'Guess I'll never know unless they catch me.'

RING. RING. The petite girl grabbed her phone from her pocket and pressed the answer button.

"Hello?"

" _Hi Nagisa! So, how's paradise on earth going for you?"_

"Oh, hi Kayano. Well, I'm bored out of my mind. There's nothing to do here besides, you know, stuff kids our age shouldn't do."

" _You know, for someone who comes from a family of assassins, you're way too much of a goody-two-shoes."_

"Uh, is that a compliment or an insult?" Asked the girl, raising an eyebrow.

" _Anyways, are you at least trying to meet cute boys?"_

"Can you please drop it about the boys Kayano? All there are here are rich kids of influential people with a 70% chance of being yakuza."

" _Hel-lo-o! Earth to Nagisa. Your family isn't exactly in the legal business either, girl. Why do you care?"_

"Exactly. It's the shadiest business of all. I'm not dragging anyone else in it. Especially if I'm going to be the clan's dog for the rest of my life."

" _I'm sorry, Nagisa. I didn't mean..."_

"It's fine. Can we just not talk about this please?"

" _Alright. You know I'm always on your side right? And so is everyone in E-Class!"_

"Yeah. Thanks Kayano. I appreciate it."

" _No trouble. Oh, I might not be able to talk to you before you get back so see you next week."_

"Why?"

" _Didn't you hear? Apparently the main land's lost communication with the Island. Probably because of the storm."_

"Really?" 'But the storm isn't that bad yet. And the call is passing just fine.' Thought the girl looking at the dark sky outside.

" _I'll talk to you again soon alright?"_

"Sure, see you Kayano."

Nagisa hung up and smiled to herself while placing her phone back in her pocket. She might not have the greatest family or had the best childhood, but at least she definitely had some good friends. Her mother had sent her to military school, hoping they could do something about her 'stupid daughter'. If she couldn't be a great assassin, then she'll at least be a great mind. So much for that. Nagisa ended up in E-class, the failing class. Where the kids with the worst grades and physical performances of the school were dropped. Physically and mentally shunned from their peers. Peas in a pod. Even their teachers didn't give a damn about them. At least, there, they could understand each other and talk. If anything, Nagisa was thankful to her mother for letting her attend this school. She looked at her watch. 2:34am. She's been sitting there for over an hour.

'I should probably call it a day. I'm exhausted.'

The girl left the club and went to the elevators to get to the 5th floor. She step out into the empty hallway and walked. But when she turned the last corner, Nagisa saw the three men from earlier as well as a blond man with huge hands and a Buddhist pearl necklace around the neck in front of her door.

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 **Hope you like it!**


	2. Red Devil

**Hi guys! I hope you're all doing great! I'm updating quickly because I felt bad about that first cliffhanger even though this one will probably be worse. (Sorry!)**

 **Anyways, Enjoy!**

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The small girl quickly hid and listened to them speak.

"Are you sure this is the room? If we break into the wrong room, it'll be a hassle and we'll arouse suspicion." Asked the blond man with the huge hands.

"Don't worry, Mr Grip. We're sure. We hacked into the security system and picked up images of that brat. We were able to get a look at her guest badge. This was the room number."

'Hacking into the hotel's security system? Who are these guys?' Wondered the short girl observing.

"Are you even sure the brat saw you come in?" Asked the one called Grip.

"No, but the boss said we couldn't be too careful. But remember we're not suppose to kill her."

Grip sighed. "Fine, step back hun."

The huge man approached the door, grabbed the handle, pulled it down with one hand, and with the other one, gave a hard punch just under it. The lock broke and the door opened. Nagisa's mouth fell open in awe.

'This guy is a monster! That's some seriously dangerous strength. I wouldn't want to get punched by those. He can probably crush someone's skull like an egg. Now wonder he's called Grip.'

"There you go, I'm done here, hun. I'm going back upstairs."

"Thanks for the help, Mr Grip. Move in you guys."

Grip moved in Nagisa's direction to go to the elevators. The bluenette looked around for any kind of hiding spot. She spotted one of the couches that decorated the hallways and threw herself under it. She held her breath as the man walked passed her and waited to hear the ding of the elevator to get out of her hiding spot.

'So that's what the red haired guy meant. They're still after me. This is not good. If they get their hands on the disk, it'll be bad news.'

The girl stealthily approached her room and peeked in to see the three men turning the room upside down.

"What exactly are we looking for? The kid's obviously not here."

"She'll come when she feels tired."

"She might not. Especially if she sees the busted lock."

"She's just a brat. No need to be three to deal with her. You guys can go. I'll wait here. Tell the guys in the security rooms to call me if they spot her somewhere else."

"Alright. Remember. The boss said no casualties."

Nagisa quickly anticipated and ran to the opposite side to hide in the angle of the door of the room next to hers. She waited for two of the men to leave the room and walk in the opposite direction towards the elevators.

'Okay this is really bad. Whoever these guys are, they have access to the security rooms. I don't know what's going on exactly, but I need to get the disk back first. If I don't, mom is going to kill me. Then I have to avoid passing in front of cameras.'

The bluenette easily understood that right now was the best time to get it back. Only one guard was in her room and the people in the security rooms wouldn't be looking for her around here because of that guard's presence. Nagisa started brainstorming about what to do. She wasn't physically strong enough to take on a mercenary (the chances of this guy being one were pretty high). If she wanted that disk, she needed to play dirty. Unfortunately for her, her bag of tricks was also in the room with that guy. After thinking it over, the bluenette decided to move. She was less than 50% sure of her plan's efficiency but it was the only thing she could think of in her present condition. Nonetheless, she did have an advantage. Those guys didn't seem to have the right to kill her. Nagisa took a deep breath before walking to her room and faked a cry a surprise.

"What the...What happened to my door?!" She exclaimed, pushing the door open and entering the room.

The man in front of her took a gun out of his jacket. "Hold it right there miss. If you scream, I'll shoot. Come in here and close that door."

Nagisa did what she was told and leaned against the door (shutting it the best she could, considering the caved in lock). She didn't have to pretend to be terrified. Her whole body was trembling. She had gone through life threatening training more than once in her life, but this was the first time it was like that for real. She could feel that sweat drops were starting to appear on her face. But if there's one thing she was good at, it was not panicking in these kinds of situation.

"W-who are you? And what are you doing in my room?"

"Don't go freaking out on me, kid. I won't have to shoot you if you make it easy for me. Answer my questions and the boss might let you go."

"But I...I didn't do anything."

"You didn't have to. You went outside a couple of hours ago. What were you doing out there?"

"I was just taking some fresh air near the cliff, that's all!" 'This guy thinks he's talking to a scared kid. He's not nervous and his hands aren't shaking. But he looks kind of bored. His guard is completely down.' "Why is that important?"

Nagisa started maneuvering around the man, so slowly that he didn't even notice that she was manipulating his own movement. The rule was absolute : never turn your back to your opponent. It was beaten into any fighter, assassin, soldier and mercenary, no exceptions. And since this guys didn't expect anything dangerous to come from a skinny fifteen year old, he was unconsciously letting himself be led on. But the man suddenly ordered.

"Go sit on the bed. And don't try anything funny. Even if you're just a brat, I won't hesitate to shoot you."

The girl gulped and nodded before heading towards her bed and sitting on it, facing the window. The man took what looked like a small radio out of his coat and brought it to his ear. "Hey boss, it's Eight. I've got the girl. She says she didn't see anything. … No, I don't think so, she's just a brat. And she looks like a scared rabbit that's about to have a heart attack from where I'm standing … Wait, are you sure about that? ..."

The man wasn't looking at her. That was the perfect opportunity. With snake-like speed, Nagisa grabbed the small black bag that was under her bed opened it and took out what looked like a small tennis ball. She hid it in the palm of her hand and turned her head to look at her captor.

"Alright. Got it, boss. We'll be right there." He hung up and turned to Nagisa again. "Come on. I'm taking you up."

Nagisa stood up and smiled at the guy, like she would to a teacher passing by the school gate. The guy made a suspicious face, suddenly feeling threatened. He raised his gun, but the girl inhaled and placed a hand in front of her mouth, before throwing the small ball on the floor. It exploded and a gray fog quickly filled the room. Before the man could react, he started coughing loudly and soon fell to his knees. He looked up at the girl, while struggling to fight the urge to fall unconscious.

"What...what did you ….do..." His eyes widened. The girl suddenly looked dangerous. She was covering her mouth but he could tell she still had that innocent smile. Then the sleeping gas got to him and he fell on the ground. Nagisa then quickly opened the window to let the fog escape. She could hold her breath for a total of one minute and twelve seconds, but she wanted to get the hell out of here quickly. Once the fog dissipated, the girl took a deep breath before grabbing her suitcase from under her bed and opening it. She quickly threw her clothes out before ripping out the inter-layer at the bottom to grab the disk that was hidden between it and the outer one. The disk itself was pretty small, so the crafty girl decided to hide it in her boot. She then picked up her bag of tricks. That's how she called the small icepack that had her little tools. It was very small and not so heavy, but definitely full of surprises.

'Alright. I got the disk and my bag back. What now? I can't hide because the guy is suppose to come in contact with me. I only see one solution. I have to figure out was going on and try to contact mom.'

She took her phone out once more and search for her mother's number in her contacts. She was about to press call but stopped herself. _'Only call me in case of emergency.'_ This wasn't exactly an emergency. Not in the mind of the head of the Shiota clan, it wasn't. But it was to her. She sighed preparing to get yelled at and pressed call. Only to have no connexion. She looked outside. 'It can't be due to the storm, it's not even windy yet. Did the people who took control jam everything? Probably. If I want to contact mother, I'll have to unjam everything. And to do that, I have to get to the security room. Using the elevators is a no go. They even have security cameras everywhere, so just stepping out of this room would make me vulnerable to detection. I don't have any disguises either. There's one option left.'

The petite girl turned to the window and approached it. She looked up. She was on the fifth floor. The security room was on the sixtieth. Fifty five story to climb. The girl took a deep breath. She was used to climbing. The tortuous training her mother had put her through made it easy enough for her. She'd have to be careful avoiding the lit rooms. Luckily, most of them were off at this hour. Either because people are sleeping or partying at the club floor. Nagisa made sure that her bag was closed and well attached before stepping outside and started to climb up. The rain made it harder for her to get a good grip so the girl was extra careful. But it's only when she made it passed the twenty-fifth floor did she realize how much danger she was in : the wind was blowing a lot stronger than down there. In her short skirt and thin shirt, she quickly felt goosebumps appear all over her body. And the rain was falling down a lot harder than before. Turning back now would be suicide. She had to keep climbing it was her only option. Nagisa was scared. Scared to die in a place like this. Her slowly freezing fingers, legs and arms were starting to be numb. She was terrified. But she couldn't back down. She couldn't stop because it would mean death for her. Suddenly, a strong lash of wind hit her and she lost her footing. The girl somehow manage to keep hanging on the the edge of a window, but she knew that she wasn't going to hang on long. Strength had abandoned her. The petite girl closed her eyes, begging the gods, if any existed that they help her.

"Well, well Miss. I wasn't expecting to see you again so soon." Shouted a voice over the screams of the wind. Nagisa opened her eyes and looked to the side. One of the windows was opened and sitting on the edge, the guy with the red hair was looking at her with the same happy smirk as before.

"You..." She felt herself slide and gasped in panic.

"You look like you're in a bit of a pinch, shorty."

'Is he mocking me?' The boy's mischievous eyes were staring at her without blinking. The wind was making his flame red hair dance over his face. Was he just going to stand there and watch her? If her limbs weren't as numb, Nagisa would probably feel herself shaking like a leaf. She looked at him, wondering who he really was... until she slipped again and had to focus on her slowly loosening grip again.

"If you want help you just have to ask you know." Said the red haired boy.

Help? She hadn't been taught that. In the business, you win or you fail. Asking for help was loosing. She wanted to but she couldn't. She didn't want to loose. She lost so many times before. She couldn't fail again. She'd be treated even worse than before. The thought of going through something even worse than what she was living now made her shake even more. Nagisa clenched her teeth and shut her eyes, trying to control her imagination, but she failed. Two warm tears dripped on her cheeks and quickly got mixed in the rain. Her hands then slipped, but the girl kept her eyes and mouth shut. She reopened them when she felt a warm hand grabbing her wrist, keeping her from her death. She looked up. The red haired boy had moved from his window to the one where she'd been hanging from. Somehow he had perfect footing and balance. And he was barefoot and in his pjs! Was he not feeling the cold? However, the crazy smirk on his face was still here, and his eyes were most definitely those of a wolf on it's prey.

"You really are stubborn shorty. It's not that hard. All you have to do is say : Please help me oh great Karma. And I'll save your life. It's a pretty fair price, wouldn't you say?"

He definitely was mocking her. Nagisa felt like if she did say that and that guy actually saved her life, she would be in his debt (not to say in his grasp). But between that, and falling to her death, she'd have to admit that she preferred the first option. And it's not like she wasn't used to bowing her head and being humiliated. She felt him loosen his grip a little and gasped, tightening hers.

"Oops! Sorry, it's starting to slip. You better make up your mind fast shorty."

Another lash of wind hit her face. "Please help me!" She shouted, over the wind.

Lightening stroke not far away, and the loud crashing sound of thunder followed. But the boy didn't move. He kept smiling and looking at her with his wolf eyes. "That's no good, miss. You forgot to add 'oh great Karma'."

"Are you serious?!" Cried out Nagisa half angry, half scared to death. Warm tears had started streaming down the petite girl's cheeks again.

What the guy did next was completely unexpected for the assassin. He laughed. He laughed like a little kid who'd just pulled a good prank. Although it was far from amusing to the bluenette. How could this guy be so relaxed and laugh at her misery like that? "I'm just kidding miss. Don't get all freaked out."

Easy for him to say. And with one strong pull, the red head practically tossed her in the air and caught her bridal style before she could even take a breath. She was suddenly inches away from the hungry wolf eyes. "But really though, I won't take you in if you don't say it."

"Is this a game to you?!"

"Pretty much. I mean, what's the point in doing something if you're not gonna get a kick out of it, right?" He said as cheerful as ever.

"Let me go, you psycho!" Ordered the young assassin, trying to get away.

"Are you sure you want me to let go?" He whispered, smirking evilly.

Nagisa stopped struggling and remembered they were hundreds of feet in the air. She looked down and reflexively threw her arms around her captor's neck. The red-head laughed again. This guy was crazy and didn't look like he was afraid to play with his life. Or hers for that matter. "Are you sure you don't want to say it miss?"

"I will not!" Stubbornly replied the girl, tightening her hold.

"You're no fun. I guess I'll let it slide since you're so cute."

The red head jumped back on the edge of his window with catlike agility, as easily as if he'd been alone, and entered his room. Nagisa realized just how cold she was when the warmth of the room hit her almost frozen body. The guy made her sit on the bed and went to close the window. While he did that, the girl wiped the mix of tears and rain off her face.

"Atchoo!" Sneezed the bluenette. 'Damn. I'll be lucky if I don't get pneumonia.'

"You should get out of these clothes." Said her savior. "You'll catch your death."

"Yeah, you're right." Replied the assassin, grabbing the bottom of her shirt to take it off... before realizing what she was doing and reversing the process instantly. She looked at the boy who was leaning against the wall arms crossed and wearing that sneaky smirk on his face. Her face turned redder than a tomato.

"Don't let me stop you." He said.

"Dream on, you pervert!" She snapped.

He went towards the bathroom as he kept talking. "There's not that much to see anyways. You're as flat as a pancake." She heard the sound of water running. "You'd probably easily pass off as a dude. A really girly one, but..." Continued the red head.

"Can you please stop making fun of me! I'm not in the mood for..."

She stopped talking when he walked out of the bathroom towards her, reaching with both hands toward her face. "W-what are you..."

He grabbed her ribbons and pulled on them to let her hair fall completely. And before she could ask, he threw the towel he had on his shoulder over her head. "You can at least start drying your hair while the bath is running."

Looks like he wasn't giving her a choice about that. He knelt down in front of her and started untying the laces of her shoes. Nagisa was taken aback by the sudden act of kindness of this devil. On one side he seemed to be a detestable person with a knack for manipulating and bullying others, and suddenly he was the guy that just saved her life. 'Talk about bipolar.' She thought. 'But I can't let my guard down. He might be up to something.'

Nagisa suddenly tensed up, when she felt something hook her stocking. "Hey! What do you think you're doing?" She said as her face turned tomato red.

He gave her a curious face. "What do you mean? We have to warm up your feet and I can't do that through your soaked clothes."

"Oh, right..." She replied, seeing his point. But that didn't make the red of her cheeks vanish. And the red devil didn't miss it. Nagisa could swear she saw pointy horns come out of his head, as his sneaky smirk returned to his face.

"What's that? You're blushing. Is it because this is your first time being undressed by a guy?"

"Shut up!" Replied the girl, pulling the towel down a bit so it would cover her eyes and face, trying to conceal her red face. But it wasn't out of embarrassment anymore. It was shame. An old shame that haunted her.

'Get a grip Nagisa.' She ordered herself. 'Thinking about the past won't do you any good. He's not _that guy._ '

She kept drying her hair as the red haired guy took off her soaked stockings. But the young man froze when he saw her legs. There was a whole lot of wounds, scars and bruises. Not the kind you get from clumsily tripping. He'd seen those marks before. He looked at the girl hiding her face under the towel. This little thing was probably hiding a whole lot more than he thought. His curious mind was pushing him to ask but he ignored it and massaged her feet expertly to warm them up. Any longer outside and they would've been frost bitten. It was a divine coincidence that she'd been climbing near his window. After a few silent minutes, he let her go wash herself and warm up. Nagisa stayed in the water a long time to warm up completely. After the freezing hell she'd been through, this felt amazing. At the same time, the young assassin kept an eye on the door. This guy hadn't really done anything to harm her, but she couldn't shake the feeling that he was dangerous somehow.

'I don't understand why he'd help some random person he just met.' Thought the girl. 'I'll leave as quickly as I can. Too bad for my clothes.'

The bluenette washed her hair and body quickly before exiting the tub and drying herself. She then put on the clothes the red head had given her. They were far too big for her, but at least they were dry. It was grey sports pants and a black T-shirt. She rolled up the legs up so she could walk properly and looked at herself in the mirror to redo her pig tails.

'I really look like a shrimp in these clothes. But now's not the time to complex about it.'

She unlocked the door and exited the bathroom. The red haired guy was sitting on his bed, bare chest and rubbing a towel over his head. Where the hell had he gone to shower? Nagisa couldn't help but notice his muscular structure, comparable to those to the members of the Shiota Clan. But there was also something around his neck. It looked like some sort of black choker. "You done shorty? Sure took your sweet time."

Nagisa perked up and averted her eyes. "You could at least put a shirt on."

"Why? It's my room, I can do whatever I want. Be thankful I didn't decide to go nude."

"Geez, you are so full of yourself." Muttered Nagisa. "Look, thanks for the help, really, but I have to go now."

The girl bowed and walked towards the door, but her host's next word stopped her instantly as she was about to turn the handle. "I didn't expect the Shiota family to show up." He said.

Nagisa slowly turned around, letting fear show on her face this time. How in the world did this guy know her last name? The lights suddenly went out (probably do to a power outage) and lightening struck, darkening the rest of the room. All Nagisa could see clearly were those demon eyes of his and that savage smirk on his face.

"Why don't you stay here a bit longer and chat with me a little? Nagisa?"

Nagisa was sure of it now : she must have done something really bad because karma was definitely being a bitch to her.

* * *

 **Oh dear trouble already!**

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	3. Two faces

**Hey guys! Sorry for the delay, but I need to wrap up my other story before I can give this one the focus it needs.**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

The lights turned back on thanks to the hotel's generator kicking in. A thousand questions started invading Nagisa's mind. Who was the guy sitting in front of her, looking at her like he wanted to eat her? Now that she thought about it, how in the world did he know about these guys going to find and search her room? That meant he knew they'd have access to the security and surveillance systems. Everything pointed to him being one of them. But that didn't make any sense. Why would he help her? The red head let his towel fall down .

"What's the matter? Cat got your tongue, Na-gi-sa?"

The way he said her name sent shivers down her spine. There could be a thousand meaning to his sweet pronunciation. It wasn't like her not being able to read someone. Nagisa didn't answer and kept her eyes on the devil. 'Maybe I can make a run for it. I don't know how fast he is though...'

"I wouldn't try if I were you. I can read you like an open book and not to brag or anything, but there's no way you can get away from me."

That comment made the bluenette realize something. How could she have been so stupid? She'd been so focused on getting away from this guy, that she forgot that the disk was hidden in her shoes and that her tools were hidden in her little black bag and her clothes. She looked at the ground, clenching her teeth, desperately trying to find a solution to the situation. In the space of the few minutes, her identity had been discovered, her tools, stolen and she'd lost the disk... If her mother learned of this, she would probably beat her to death. She had to fix this, but how?! This was just a recovery mission! How could she have messed up this badly in a single day? She let her arms fall and leaned against the door, fearing she would fall. Why was her mind so blank? She was pulled out of her daze when that joyful laughter of his filled the room again.

"You really are too easy to freak out, shorty." Said the red head.

"Just... who are you?" She asked without really wanting to.

"I told you. Karma."

"Would you quit joking around!"

"That's my actual name, honest. Karma Akabane."

"And why do you know my name?"

"Oh, that was easy!" He pulled up a tiny blue card. "I looked through your bag and I found your student ID. Along with other interesting little things."

Nagisa felt her face heat up like crazy and looked at her feet, betraying her shame. She was this close to letting the tears. That must have been the stupidest thing she'd ever done. Keep her student ID on her during missions? She really was incompetent as an assassin.

"You're pretty pathetic, you know." Continued the merciless, sharp-tongued lad. "What kind of idiot decides to go climbing a giant building with that kind of weather? Are you sure you're an assassin shorty? You're terrible at this."

She knew that. She's been told the same thing over and over again for over ten years. She thought she was immune to that kind of humiliation. But it was like someone was saying it to her for the first time. Why was it so much more painful coming from a complete stranger? Why did she care about what he thought? She didn't know him, for crying out loud.

"Hey." He called out after a moment for silence. "Come here."

That was not a demand, it was an order. From master to slave. Again, another thing she was used to. Being whistled like a dog, and talked to like she was trash, were nothing new to her. It was a constant reminder of her status in the clan. Every time she was called like this, she wondered if she could faint submission and get close enough to kill them. She'd never dared to try it for real, coward that she was.

'But this guy is not a clan member. No matter how cunning he looks, he's not an assassin. And he thinks he had someone completely incompetent in front of him. His guard is completely down.'

Nagisa took a deep breath before walking slowly towards the laid-back boy who was still staring at her like she was some nice new toy to play with.

'I remain head down, as if I'm on my way to speak with mom.' She thought to herself, executing every move as naturally as possible. 'I bring my hands together and straighten my arms, to show insecurity...' The one thing she had kept were her red bracelets in which very small blades were hidden. She had her weapon. Good. All she had to do was wait for the perfect moment and strike...

"Are you sure you're going to kill me, shorty?"

Nagisa suddenly stopped and looked up. She was only a few inches from the bed and therefore the boy. Those words had paralyzed her instantly. Karma was now grinning teeth out. His canines being slightly longer that the rest of his teeth, he really looked like a devil.

"You're actually lucky I'm not wearing any shirt. You have a clear view of where the heart is. Be sure to aim straight through the vital pump. Or were you planning to slit my throat instead? That's also a good move. You're not as dumb as you look."

Nagisa stared at Karma, shocked. What was her intention? To really make the blade penetrate the flesh and end this guy's life? She'd never done it before... Did she start with that intention? Just the thought made her feel nauseous. The red head grabbed her hand holding the small knife and brought closer to his throat, still smiling.

"If you want I can help you with the first steps. Look it's easy..." He pulled on her hand, slowly but forcefully, his iron grip not leaving her a chance to escape. The tip of the blade was now against his throat. "All you have to do now is put some good pressure and voila! Still not enough? No prob! I'll help a little more."

Nagisa's breathing stopped when he started pulling on her wrist again, and the blade pierced the flesh. Blood escaped and started streaming down his throat.

"STOP!" Shouted Nagisa suddenly pulling as hard as she could on her hand. But Karma's iron grip didn't falter.

"But I thought you wanted to kill me?" He said as calmly as ever, clearly taunting her.

Quickly seeing that he was a lot stronger than her, the panicked girl sent two finger of her free hand to collide with his throat. Cutting off someone's breathing causes a very short but effective paralytic effect. Karma instantly let go and brought his hand to his throat, coughing loudly to regain his breathing. The blade fell to the ground and Nagisa took a few steps back panting and starring at the boy like he was crazy, which he most definitely was!

"What's wrong with you?!" She let out, almost. "Are you insane?!"

The boy chuckled before looking at her again. "I just wanted to confirm something. I rest my case shorty, you really are a terrible assassin."

'You put your life in danger just to confirm that?'

"And I found out a lot more as well. Since you've helped satisfy my curiosity a bit, how about you let me help you? For real this time?"

"Help me? You don't even know me..." Said Nagisa, feeling more and more uncertain about who she was really dealing with.

"I know that you're a wannabe assassin of the Shiota Clan. If you came to this shady place, then you definitely are here on some sort of mission. With your set of skills though, I doubt you have a target to eliminate. Info exchange maybe?"

'Damn, this guy is good. Or he's faking to make me spill the beans. I can't let my guard down.'

"And I know that you're running from some people here. People who have access to the security system and you climbed from outside to avoid getting spotted on the cameras didn't you? I can tell you how to avoid them altogether without toying with your life, like an idiot."

"You can do that?"

"Only if you agree to my conditions." Added the red head.

The bluenette frowned at the proposition. There just had to be a catch. "I don't like where this is going."

"I want to know why you're here on this island."

Nagisa hesitated a few minutes before answering. Was knowing a way to escape video surveillance worth giving away the reason for her presence here? It seemed reasonable to her. Although if her mother learned about it, she wouldn't go unpunished. Nagisa took a deep breath and clenched her teeth. "I'm here to give something to someone. That's all I can tell you."

"Good enough for me." Surprisingly, replied Karma before standing up. "Now, sit on the bed."

"Huh?"

"I said conditionS. Sit on the bed."

What was this guy up to this time? Keeping her guard up Nagisa sat on the edge of the bed as Karma brought held his chin with two fingers and studied her meticulously. He looked genuinely focused. Nagisa kept her eyes on his face to avoid looking at his bare chest. He had impressive musculature for his age, and he couldn't be that much older than her. He eyes then fell on that weird black collar around his neck. It looked like a simple black choker, but on a guy it was strange. But she suddenly caught the glimpse of a tiny red light on the throat. 'It's an electronic device?' He focus was so, that she didn't notice the red head taking out his phone.

FLASH.

"What are you doing?" Asked Nagisa, blinking from the flash.

"Well it's the first time a girl wears my clothes. It's kinda sexy, so I wanted to keep a memory. You really look like a shrimp shorty. Are you sure you're fed enough?"

"Delete that immediately!" She shouted standing up, and all flustered.

"No you don't!" He answered holding it up. His eyes suddenly turned dark. "Unless you think you can take it by force."

Alright, now she was getting angry. Okay this guy saved her life but by no means did that mean he had the right to toy with her like that! The bluenette knelt down and grabbed the towel he had dropped earlier and was now stepping on and pulled on it as hard as she could. Karma didn't have the time to jump away and took a few maladroit steps back before tripping and falling on his back. Nagisa grabbed the opportunity and picked up his phone quickly. But when she turned it on, she saw that the screen needed a password. Karma laughed again while staring at her from the floor.

"Wow. I take back what I say. There's more to you than meets the eye, shorty."

"Would you stop calling me that already? I have a name." Growled the girl. He just gave her an amused smirk as an answer. She sighed giving up. "So are you gonna tell me how to avoid the cameras or not?"

Karma suddenly stretched like a cat and yawned loudly. "Don't you want to sleep first? It's like four o'clock now and I'm beat."

"You mean in this room?"

"Where else would I mean? It's safer than anywhere else." He stood up and let himself fall on the bed again. "Your room's being watched now and it's not like your contact will be looking for you in the middle of the night. So get some rest and I'll tell you how to avoid getting spotted tomorrow. Also you might want to wait for your stuff to dry."

'I guess that makes sense.' Thought the girl. "But there's only one bed..."

"What's the problem?" Innocently asked the red haired boy. "It's more than big enough for two people."

"Huh? You can't just ask a girl to..." She couldn't even bring herself to finish that sentence.

"You know when I really want something, I don't ask." Replied Karma. "Sleep on the floor if you want. The AC sucks here though. You'll be a popsicle by morning."

Almost getting frostbitten once in one evening was enough for her. But she really felt uncertain about this guy. It's not that she thought he'd do anything, even though he was predictable. If she didn't count all the joking around, insulting and messing with her, he'd done nothing but help since the beginning. And she was exhausted, she really needed to sleep. Her mother told her that her contact would find her between the hours of 6pm and 12am sometime during this week. So Karma was right when he said her contact wouldn't be looking for her. But on the other hand, he was hiding how much he really knew about the situation here.

'I guess I don't have a choice.'

She looked at the boy and tossed him his phone. "Can you … put a shirt on?"

"Why? You seemed to enjoy yourself staring at my abs earlier, you little perv."

"That's not what I was doing!" She shouted, flustered. "Just do it!"

* * *

" _Even your mother, gave up on you. But I won't. I will never let you go."_

"No..."

" _I'll make you stronger. I'll make you smarter. I'll make sure you become worthy of my training. Even if I have to break you entirely to build you back up."_

"No..."

" _You won't be my failure, will you Nagisa?"_

"No, stop... Let go of me..."

" _What a pathetic excuse for failing. I hope you're ready for the consequences."_

"Please stop... please!"

The desperate scream made Karma look up from his computer. He'd been awake for quite sometime, and waited sitting on the couch of the room, his computer on his lap. He quickly closed the device and walked to Nagisa's side. The petite bluenette was curled up, her arms pressed against her chest, shielding her from an invisible threat. She was sweating like an ox and an ocean of tears was escaping her closed eyes. To top it all off she was hyperventilating. Whoever she was dreaming of was torturing her, it really didn't take a genius to know that. The boy sat on the edge of the bed and placed a hand on her mouth to force her to breath in by her nose.

"Wake up shorty." He said calmly, as the girl was still struggling to remove his hand from her mouth. But he was too strong for her. He leaned in closer to her ear. "Wake up." He said again.

She let out a couple of moans, choked by Karma's hand, and it took a few minutes for her to settle down a bit but she still struggled as if the boy's grip was the one of her tormentor. "They won't go away until you wake up Nagisa. Wake up!"

She suddenly opened her, and breathed loudly. Her eyes traveled around the room as if to remind herself of where she was. Karma took he hand away and waited for her mind to catch up to the present. As her breathing slowly slowed down, the red head smiled and wiped the sweat off her forehead and tears from her face.

"Good morning shorty. I'd ask if you slept well, but you obviously didn't."

"Karma?" She said as if it was a question. She sat up and rubbed her face with her hands.

"What were you dreaming about?"

She flinched a little and looked down. "Nothing."

"Was it whoever made those marks on your legs?"

"I DON'T WANT TO TALK ABOUT IT!" She shouted.

Karma was taken aback by the short girl's sudden burst out. She obviously wasn't the type to shout or have impulsive reactions like this. Her legs weren't the only thing scarred. She was being haunted. To a point the red head could never imagine. No one could understand how much she carried. Although Nagisa seemed immediately guilty to have shouted.

"What time is it?" She asked.

"3:30PM."

"What?! Why didn't you wake me?"

"Why, are you in a hurry?"

"Hum, no. Sorry. I forgot. I'm not used to … not having anything to do."

Her stomach suddenly growled so loudly, her face turned red and Karma snickered. "Go shower, I'll get something to eat."

"Right, thanks."

Karma waited for her to disappear in the bathroom and hear the sound of the water, before going back to his computer and pulling the disk out of the device. He placed it back in the girl's boot. He grabbed his earpiece and put it on. While it rang, he opened the curtains. The sky was still covered in dark clouds. The rain was endless and the wind, restless.

"Hey it's me. It looks like we're about to have some trouble."

" _What kind of trouble?"_

"The kind that's going to snoop in your business. Thought you might want to know."

" _My problems are your problems Akabane. Don't you forget it."_

"Isn't that why I'm reporting to you like the good little dog you made me into?"

" _Anyways, can you deal with it on your own?"_

"You already got me taking care of the deal and now you want me to hunt down snoops too? No thanks. I'm a genius, not a magician."

" _Fine, I'll get someone else to do it. What kind of rats are we talking about?"_

"Government. And before you ask, yes I'm sure."

" _Great."_ Cursed the voice on the other side. _"Be sure to keep an eye out for them and deal with them if necessary."_

"Take care of your own vermin, Asano." Growled the red devil. "I've got my own job to do."

" _Watch your tongue Akabane. You know what'll happen if you cross the line."_

"Right cause this job would be so much easier without me around."

" _Screw you, dog. Do what you're told."_

The beep sound warned him that the conversation was over. The boy put away the earpiece and called room service to get some food to the room. When Nagisa came out of the bathroom, the food was set on the room's table. She was wearing her clothes from yesterday that'd the time to dry throughout her long night. She sat facing the red haired boy who was looking at his phone.

"Thanks for the food. I'll repay you..."

"No need. I'm far from out of cash."

"But it still wouldn't be right."

"You know for an assassin you sure talk a lot about what's right. Should someone who kills for a living even be thinking about all of that stuff?"

"..." The girl, ignorant of what was the right answer, looked at the ground. 'And there he goes insulting me again …'

"Don't make that face. I wasn't trying to be a jerk. I'm just the really straightforward type."

"Straightforward and tactless." Frowned the vexed assassin.

Karma pushed the tray towards Nagisa who grabbed a piece of bread and some butter. She glanced at the boy who was looking at something on his phone. He was wearing black pants and shoes and a red shirt, sleeves rolled up to the elbows and a black shirt under.

"You know I heard that assassins who don't cut it in your clan get cut off." Suddenly asked the sharp-tongued lad. "So what's up with you?"

"How do you know that?"

"Let's just say, I'm really good at gathering information."

'He won't let it go until I tell him.' Thought the girl, sighing. "It's none of your business. Besides, you're the one who suppose to tell me something."

"Well yeah, but you haven't paid me yet..."

"Just when did I agree to pay you?!"

"Hahaha! You're way too easy to mess with, shorty. I sent all of the information to your phone. The cameras are about everywhere on the lower floors. But past the entertainment floor, clients like to have things quiet to deal with their business. Like this the staff doesn't have to be replaced every time something shady goes down their. I sent you a plan of the entire facility so that you know exactly where they are. The rest should be a piece of cake for someone as invisible as you."

Nagisa took her phone out of her pocket. Indeed she'd received the plan and blueprint. "Thank you Karma. I really don't know what I would've done without your help. So thank you."

The red head folded his arms and leaned back in his chair. "Tell me one more thing Nagisa. If you hate that life so much, why don't you run away?"

The bluenette looked at him surprise. It probably wasn't that hard to see that she disliked her situation, but still … why was he insisting on snooping in her personal life? She gave him a sad smile. "If I did that, I'd be asking for much worse."

She stood up, put on her shoes and placed her tiny black bag on her back. "Thanks again Karma." She said smiling, before heading towards the door. She stepped out in the hallway and looked around for anything suspicious.

"One more thing shorty." Called out the red head, at the door.

Nagisa turned around and was surprised when she saw that he wasn't smiling, but looking at her with a serious face. The first she'd ever seen on him.

"If you ever find yourself in a pinch, feel free to ask me for help. But be careful about that. I won't always be able to be your ally."

With that the red-head closed the door, leaving the confused girl staring at it.

'That was weird. But I don't have time to waste. I have to find to the control room so that I can contact mom.' She thought, heading for the elevators.

* * *

 **Please review!**


	4. The contact

**HEY GUYS! Sorry for the two months delay, that was mean. But I had a lot of work and other stories to take care of. But I'll soon be able to focus more on that one!**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

Karma's map really was useful. There really was no need for Nagisa to do life threatening stunts to go around the surveillance cameras. As she made her way through the hallways, the petite girl couldn't help but smile to herself. Having someone to help her was... how could she put it? It felt really good. It was something she wasn't used to at all.

" _When you're an assassin of the Shiota Clan, you don't rely on anyone but yourself. Otherwise you're worthless."_

Her smile quickly disappeared when her mother's voice rang inside her head, giving her a reality check. She shook her head.

'Get over it Nagisa. It'll never happen again. And besides, if mom ever learns that I relied on a complete stranger for help, she'll hang me with my own skin.'

Nagisa suddenly stopped in her tracks, suddenly realizing something. What would happen if she called her mother for help without having performed the exchange? The consequences would probably be the same than if she just came home on her own with the disk still in her possession. The head of the Shiota Clan would murder her. The bluenette slapped both her hands on the cheeks to calm down the growing panic.

'Now's not the time to think about that. Whoever these guys are, they're gonna try to find me as long as I'm here. But I can't just call mom without any good reason.'

She leaned against the wall and looked through the giant glass windows. Outside, the storm was still raging. As long as it was this violent, no boat or aircraft could get close to the island. Meaning even if she managed to contact the Clan, they wouldn't be able to do anything until the storm died down. Nagisa let herself slide down the wall sighing again. This really was the first time she was in a situation so complicated. Not only that, but no one was helping her out this time. She looked at the ceiling, tempted to return to the red haired boy's room and ask for help. But he'd already given too much for her. He'd saved her life and given her hints on how to avoid danger while wandering around. It was strange. She barely knew him, and yet she couldn't get him out of her head. Probably because he'd saved her and made such an impression on her. Observing was her strong point, since she couldn't do much on her own. And for one thing, she could tell that Karma was hiding behind the teasing and devilish facade. There was something more to him, even though she wasn't sure what.

" _You seemed to enjoy yourself staring at my abs earlier, you little perv."_

Her cheeks turned bright red when she remembered his words and the bluenette shook her had. Damn him for toying with her like that though. Like a kid playing with a new toy. But the thought made her smile for some reason. She took a deep breath to calm herself and took her small bag to check out the contents. She still had the disk in her boot but she wanted to make sure that she still had her tools. After a quick check, she put everything back in. She then looked at Karma's map on her phone. Indeed, most of the surveillance was for the lower floors where the common indoor activities took place. But starting the higher floors, almost nothing. So logically speaking, the guys that were after certainly stayed in the upper floors, where the building had private meeting rooms and stuff like that. Her contact would find her between 6pm and midnight. She didn't know anything about him and (knowing her mother) he probably knew nothing about her. They had a code. He had the sentence and she had the reply. The exchange would probably take place in a crowded space, like the club. In other words, she'd have to stay hidden from midnight to six and then hang out in those spaces. Her watch indicated 4:00pm.

'I have to find someplace to hide.'

Getting back to her feet, the petite girl made her way to the elevators and took one down. Karma said it himself, she was someone with a very weak presence. Hiding in the middle of a bunch of teens her age messing around in the arcade or at the pools was a piece of cake and probably the best chance she had at not being noticed by the mercenaries. While in the elevator, Nagisa took a look at herself in the mirror.

'I should really find something easier to move in.'

The doors opened but just as Nagisa was about to step out, she noticed from the corner of the eye a man with an impressive built just as he was stepping on the elevator next to her's. No second thoughts needed : this was the man that had broken her door with his bare hand. She reflexively stepped back into her own elevator.

"So Mr Grip." Said a man's voice. "Did you find anything?"

"No. It's not my job anyways. Let's get back to up."

Once she heard the doors close, Nagisa quickly stepped out and waited for the counter to stop. It froze on the last floor. Without thinking, she ran back into her elevator and pressed the button to go to the sixty-fifth floor. Why was she following them? She just escaped death! Was she that desperate to get in trouble? She knew it was a dumb move, yet … if she could figure out by herself what was going on and report it to her mother, then maybe, just maybe she would get some acknowledgment. Still, the bluenette had no idea what she was going to do. When she reached the last floor, she ended up in an empty hallway. Apparently, the rooms here were the most luxurious and expensive and were the size of big apartments. She carefully made her way down the hall until she reached the spot where a case of stairs was going up to the roof, probably. But two guys (more like gorillas) dressed in black suits were stationed in front of the stairs. Nagisa backed up to avoid being seen. The two were talking.

"How long do you think it's gonna take Grip to take it all down here?"

"No idea. We're lucky the shipment arrived before that hell of a storm did. Otherwise the client would've been pissed."

"No kidding. Not to mention the boss."

The assassin made sure to pay attention to the conversation as she moved.

'Let's see just how precise the floor blueprint is.' She thought as she pulled out her phone to check out Karma's info. Indeed this blueprint also had a plan of the power set up. Nagisa smiled to herself before running in the opposite direction and finding the door that led to the top floors generator. After unlocking the door with a small needle, she took a small electronic device that she placed on the generator. She made her way back to the stairs and hid in the frame of a door. She pressed the button of her tiny remote. The entire hallway suddenly turned dark.

"What the hell?" Said one of the two. "The generator can't be broken."

"Well go check it out."

"How? I can't see a damn thing!"

While they argued, the young assassin quickly pulled a small light grenade out of her bag and tossed it as far as she could could down the hallway. The flash and the noise, quickly got the attention of the too men and while they looked in that direction, the short bluenette easily slipped passed them as quiet as a cat stalking. Moving in the dark was another thing that was second nature to her. Still, it wasn't like her to pull such a bold move. Her heart was beating so fast inside, she thought they could hear it. But she didn't have time to think, and let her body lead her up to the roof. When she pushed the door to access it, the roaring wind and the pouring rain hit her in the face. A flash of thunder hit the communication tower on the roof making her jump. If she wasn't careful, the storm would send her over the edge of the building. The sound of people shouting orders got her attention. On the landing platform was a helicopter, and people were taking huge metal trunks out of it. The man named Grip was there giving orders and talking to someone on the radio, shouting to cover the roaring voice of the wind. Nagisa was too far to hear him though. The girl focused on the men carrying the trunks. They were putting them in the service elevator.

'Again, proof that they took over hotel security. Only the staff is suppose to use that elevator.' She thought. 'Whatever is inside these cases must be he reason for all of this fiasco.'

This time, Nagisa didn't need a distraction to get closer. These mercenaries had their hands full moving the contents of the aircraft and making sure the storm didn't kill them in the process. The girl made her way to the service elevator easily and waited for no one to look at it before jumping over the piled up trunks and landing behind them. Once full, the mercenaries pressed the down button which took them directly to the floor under. After making sure no one was there, Nagisa stepped out. A door was open, leading into one gigantic room that was practically empty. The absence of noise told the young assassin that no one was there. She entered the room and saw that it was one of those guest apartments. Piled up inside in front of the giant glass windows, were even more of those metallic trunks. Taking a small swiss army knife out of her pocket, the bluenette proceeded to pick the lock of one of them. In the space of three seconds and a half, the lock gave in and she pushed the lid open. What was inside were piles of painkiller bottles. The tags were in english but she knew enough of the language to translate the words to painkiller.

'That's just a cover. There's no way what's in there is legal.' Nagisa grabbed one of the small bottles, thinking she'd stumbled on some sort of drug trafficking. 'But why would they need to take over the hotel security? I mean, shady business goes down here all the time. Why would this one be different?'

She opened the lid of the bottle and poured some of the content into her free hand. They were small red pills. But they didn't look familiar. Maybe it was some kind of experimental drug? There was no way to know. The young assassin didn't get the time to linger on that thought any more. Footsteps and voices were getting closer. She closed the bottle hid behind the trunks.

'Shoot! I lingered too much.' She cursed before taking a deep breath. 'Calm down Nagisa. Stay focused and wait for a way out.'

Peeking from her hiding spot, she saw four men step into the room. Two in black suits like the others, one was Grip and one in a long brown coat and with a severe expression on his face. He somehow felt familiar to her.

"Boss." Said one of the men in black. "We've got everything here and the rest in the service elevator. What now?"

The man responded with a thick Russian accent. "Now we wait for our client. He should be here soon. Six, call back all the numbers. Grip, you get Smog and Gastro back here. We don't want any surprises."

"Sure thing, hun."

While the men proceeded to execute the orders, Nagisa's mind suddenly put the pieces together. 'If I'm right, this guy's name is Lovro. He's known for dealing weird products all over the world. But he's usually invisible. No one knows how he gets in or out of countries and into others. The takeover makes no sense at all. In that case it probably has something to do with the client...'

"Honestly, stealing all these pills and hunting down all the ones linked to the project was a pain." Said one of them.

"Yeah, but the pay is definitely good. I don't know why anybody would want these. I get that some people are crazy enough to want to create super-soldiers or monsters and all, but that's a failed project. Only one out of the sixth hundred lab rats gave lasting results and he's still a failure."

"Well, be glad. We get paid a fortune to deliver useless trash."

'And that makes this business even weirder than before.' Thought the bluenette carefully paying attention to every word.

"By the way, has Eight recovered yet? He was pretty pissed that a little girl got the drop on him like that." He said before chuckling.

"Instead of laughing like an idiot Five, you should be concerned. That kid is not just anybody." Said Lovro, who was contemplating the storm outside.

"What do you mean sir?"

"For starters, a child that carries sleeping gas grenades is no ordinary brat. I don't believe she has anything to do with our business, but we shouldn't let our guard down. The rules haven't changed : if you find her you either bring her to me or eliminate her. Keep your eyes open."

"Yes Sir." Both men replied at once."

Grip lowered his radio and turned back towards the Russian dealer. "He'll be here shortly, hun. He said something about watching out for spies hun."

"All my men are hand picked by myself. And I'm sure our careful client didn't choose you three at random either. I'm not worried."

'Wait. So the numbers are working for Lovro, but that grip guy and two others are working for the client? This is so confusing.'

The men started bringing in the rest of the metal trunks. Suddenly, Nagisa felt her phone vibrate in her pocket which almost made her jump and she prayed that no one heard. She took it out. A message from an unknown number had sent her a message.

GET OUT OF THERE NOW.

That scared her. Get out? But how? The door was too far and the four men were standing between her and it. She looked around the room. The only other way out was the window. But with the storm raging outside, even stronger than yesterday there was no way she could try what she did the day before. Her heart started beating faster. Wherever that message came from didn't matter, it was a warning. She didn't need to know more. But what was she suppose to do?

BOOM!

Nagisa almost jumped out of her skin when she heard the explosion coming from down the hallway. But she wasn't the only one surprised. All four men pulled out their guns (except Grip who didn't seem to have one) and all rushed out, muttering things like what the hell. The bluenette didn't waste the opportunity. She dashed out, but just as she crossed the few meters that separated her from the service elevator, Grip stopped in his tracks and turned around his eyes widening in surprise. Nagisa knew better than to stop and pressed a button at random the second she entered the elevator. But just as the doors closed a pair of monstrous hand stopped them. Nagisa's heart skipped a beat and she reflexively took her small knife out of her bracelet and stabbed him through the flesh in between the metacarpals, where the damage would be minimal but the pain was unbearable. She heard a loud grunt before the hands let go of the doors that finally closed and allowed the machine to go down.

The girl backed up against the wall, panting like crazy and her heart beating so fast she thought it was going to escape her chest.

'Why in the world did I think that was a good idea?' She thought as her breathing steadily got slower. 'That was the dumbest thing I could have done. Why was I thinking? If mom saw me screwing up like that, she'd murder me.'

He phone vibrated again and the young assassin took it out.

MADE IT OUT?

She didn't know why but she responded.

YES.

She then looked at the button she pressed. It said Kitchen.

'Oh that's right. This is the service elevator.'

Nagisa glanced at her phone to look at the time. It indicated 6:30pm. She was late. After a quick glance to the board, she pressed the button that said Entertainment floor. Indeed, the young assassin ended up in the casino which she quickly exited to go somewhere more crowded and where she could blend in more. In other words, back to the club. Again, all she was suppose to do was wait around for six hours. She sat at a table and ordered drinks after drinks, while the clock tick. But this time, instead of being unbelievably bored, she was in a state of hyper-vigilance. Anyone that entered the room was scanned by her focused blue eyes. Any of those guys could come looking for her at any time. Nagisa hoped that the storm outside would die away soon. She wanted to be gone from this place, even if it was to go back to the Clan.

A couple of hours went by and the club slowly filled up with guests. Nagisa had probably emptied more glasses than she ever had in an entire week. She looked around. Everything was the same as when she got here. An arm suddenly snaked around her shoulders making her jump and face the person sitting next to her...

"I knew I recognized you, cutie!" Said the guy who was clearly drunk. "You left so fast yesterday we didn't have time to talk."

'Oh, it's the same guy from yesterday.'

"The name's Yujin. What's yours?" He asked with an idiotic grin on his face.

'Great. But I guess it'll help blend in if I talk with someone.'

"I'm Nagisa." She said, getting his arm off of her shoulders gently.

"So what brings you here?"

"My mom. More like she sent me here though."

"Yeah? Same. My folks wanted to get rid of me for some time so they sent me here. I've been bored out of my mind ever since I got here, but at least no one monitors you 24/7." He said taking another sip from his glass.

"You shouldn't be drinking at your age."

"What are you a goody-two-shoes?"

"I get called that a lot..."

"You gotta relax sometime, babe. Here try some." He said handing her his glass.

"Thanks but I really can't …"

"Come on, there's no need to play daddy's girl here. No one's ever gonna know what you did here, you know? Loosen up and have fun..."

'Geez, this guy won't let me be unless I do what he wants.'

She sighed before taking his glass and bringing it to her lips to take a quick sip. The whiskey burned her throat and she started coughing, as he took it back. Yujin chuckled at the sight.

"Aww, you're a lightweight. That's so cute." He said, staring at her red face. "Seriously though Nagisa, why don't you stick with me while we're here. I've been looking for charming company and who knows? Maybe we can relieve each other of boredom." He put his drink down pulled her closer to him. "What d'you say?"

"Hum, could you not..." She started.

The young assassin didn't want to start a commotion in here. It would only attract more attention to her. But suddenly a strong hand gripped her arm and pulled her out of her seat to her feet and out of Yujin's hold. Her back hit something and a pair of arms circled around her neck from behind.

"Sorry pal." Said a cheerful voice she recognized immediately. "She's already got someone for the job."

Nagisa cheeks instantly turned crimson and she looked up. "K-Karma?!"

"Hey shorty. Missed me?" He said giving her his signature mischievous smile. He turned back to Yujin with that same smile, but somehow he seemed incredibly threatening. "Sorry to interrupt the date, by the way."

The drunken boy didn't seem to appreciate the red head's butting in and stood up. "Hey mind your own business, tomato head."

"Hey I apologized." Replied Karma with his ever happy-go-lucky expression of someone who doesn't understand what's happening. "I didn't do anything wrong. I just saved a lady from getting kissed by a rat face. That was pretty chivalrous of me, I think. Wasn't it Nagisa?"

The bluenette sweat dropped, not really knowing what to do in this situation. Yujin gritted his teeth and raised his fist.

"What d'you say to me, bastard?!"

It all went too fast for Nagisa's eyes to see, but the second Yujin was close enough, Karma took flipped a switchblade open and extended his arm to extend it until it touched the drunken boy's throat. Yujin instantly froze and stared at the blade in disbelief and fear. Nagisa also froze in panic and her mouth dropped open. Karma's innocent smile turned into a smirk.

"What did I say? I thought I was being pretty clear. Apparently not enough for a birds-for-brains like you..."

"Karma!" Shouted Nagisa, getting free of his hold. She grabbed his arm and lowered it before whispering. "Are you crazy? Do you want to start a panic wave in here?"

He laughed at her reaction causing her to be even more flustered. "I'm serious!"

"So was I." He said before looking at Yujin again. "You're still here?"

After a mouse-like, high pitched squeak sound, the druken boy turned around and dashed away as fast as he could, making the red head smile in satisfaction.

"Aren't you gonna at least say thank you?"

"Never mind that! Put the knife away before someone sees it!"

"Oops my bad." He closed the knife and handed it to her. "Sorry I kind of borrowed it without permission. Nice place to hide it, by the way." He added winking.

Nagisa noticed that it was indeed hers. The one she kept hidden between her waist and the inner layer of her skirt. Her cheeks flamed up. Just when did he take that and why didn't she notice? The assassin quickly shook her head.

"What are you even doing here?"

"Hmpf." Was all she got for an answer, before red devil grabbed her wrist and pulled her to an empty corner. Without realizing it, she ended up her back to the wall and the red head leaning over her, just like when they first met. He was smirking at her, but she didn't know the meaning behind that smirk. And that scared her.

"What were you doing up there Nagisa?"

"How did you know..."

"I gave you the map to avoid being detected, not to run head first into trouble. You really are an amateur as an assassin you know."

Nagisa stayed mute in shock. Why did this guy that she met a day ago so interested in what she was doing? Him leaning closer caused her to lower herself a little. He never stopped smiling but she was sure that there was irritation behind this mask. His slight movement towards her was like a pressure, forcing her to answer.

"I … I thought if I could figure out what was causing the jamming, I could stop it."

"And that's why you ended up on the last floor?" He leaned in closer until his mouth grazed her ear. "Don't lie to me."

"I didn't plan to okay!" She shouted, suddenly fearful of his intentions. "I saw the guy who broke my door and … I wanted to know what was going on! That's all! I wasn't thinking."

After a few long, long moments of silence, the red head backed off. Nagisa dared to look up at his face. This time, his smile was sad and distant.

"You really are an idiot." He said, as if he were talking to himself. "You can't do anything on your own and then you throw yourself in those kinds of messes. There's not always gonna be someone to bail you out you know."

'Was he … worried about me? But why? We barely know each other?'

She looked at her feet. "Why … do you care about what happens to me? We don't even know each other."

He shrugged. "Who knows?" He extended his hand towards her and gently lifted her chin with two fingers. "I like you shorty. You're fun to mess with. And let's just say that, the more you pry in other people's business, the harder it'll be for me to play with you."

"Huh?" Let out the bluenette confused. "I don't understand, why..."

He didn't let her finish and placed a finger on her lips. "I just warned you. Don't pry." He said, almost in a whisper. Karma took his hand back and started walking away. "See ya."

She wouldn't have been able to explain what happened, but her body moved on her own. Nagisa ran after him and grabbed his arm. "Karma!"

He turned around and looked at her with a smile again, as if he was expecting her to do this. She opened her mouth to say the words. Just two words. Two words she'd said to him and him alone. And that she wanted to say again. Help me.

" _Don't rely on anyone but yourself. Otherwise you're worthless."_

But when the head of the Shiota Clan's voice rang in her head again, it was like her vocal cords got paralyzed and she found herself incapable of saying them. And just as if he'd expected that as well, Karma just gave her a glare of pity.

"If you want something from me, you have to learn to speak first." He simply said, before freeing himself from her grip and resuming his walk.

The young assassin stayed paralyzed in that position for a while, until frustration made all her face muscles contract. She knew the feeling that was tearing her up inside. The first time she'd felt it was when her mother watched as other children of the Clan beat her up for fun.

'I don't even know him so why? Why do I feel betrayed?' But she quickly brushed it off. 'It's no use crying over spilt milk.'

But she didn't feel like just standing around. She went to the restroom to freshen up and looked at herself in the mirror only to meet that pokerface she'd adopted. It was her mask that hid the turmoil inside. And that guy... had managed to crack it only a second after meeting her. Was that why she felt frustrated? Because some random guy with a sharp tongue had caught a glimpse of her true self and had just walked away with it? She didn't know. And she didn't want to. It was like she'd lost something too important not to care. Was he really the one who saved her? Nagisa sighed loudly.

'I'm on my own. I guess that was to be expected. What can I do n...'

Her thoughts were interrupted when someone suddenly placed their hand in front of her mouth and placed a gun against her temple with their free one. The young assassin looked in the mirror. The assailant was a beautiful blond woman with blue, clearly a foreigner, who looked at her in the mirror with a serious expression.

"Scream and your brain will end up decorating this mirror. You got me?"

Clearly not in a position to do anything, Nagisa nodded. 'Wait wasn't she the woman playing the piano yesterday? Don't tell me... is she one of them?'

"Move." Ordered the blonde pushing the younger girl out of the bathroom. Once outside, she led her further down the hall to the staircase. She took her to the first floor where the first guest rooms were, and led her to one of them. She knocked two times quickly and after five seconds of pause, knocked once more quickly and then three more times slower.

'That's... morse code. For the letters I and J.' Thought the assassin.

The door opened and the woman pushed her inside roughly, before entering behind her and closing the door. Nagisa backed away a couple of steps before looking at the two people in front of her. The one who'd opened the door was a man in his mid thirties with spiky black hair and a severe expression. He was wearing a white shirt with rolled up sleeves and black pants. Add a tie and a jacket and you'd have a real businessman.

"Well, I brought you the runt." Said the blond woman. "What now?"

He ignored her and addressed. "Young lady, tell me where your mother is."

Nagisa sighed and her muscles relaxed before she straightened up and replied. "If you want to see her, you'll have to tell me where she is first."

She finished the password of her contact, confirming that he'd found his source.

* * *

 **Hope you liked it! PLEASE REVIEW!**


	5. Deal

**Hey guys! It's been a while! For starters HAPPY NEW YEAR 2017! I wish you health and happiness!**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

"I am Tadaomi Karasuma."

"I'm Nagisa Shiota." She said bowing. "Please to meet you."

The man in a suit looked at her for a long moment. His stare was so intense that it made the young assassin nervous and look away. What was he thinking? Karasuma frowned. The girl in front of him with little more than a kid. Fifteen at most if he had to guess. Not only that but for an assassin, she was being strangely polite. He'd dealt with info exchange with the Shiota Clan before, but those he'd met were adults for one and barely spoke. They'd just stand around, on constant guard, waiting for the exchange and then vanish the instant everything was done. She stared back with confusion on her face. Yes, her emotions were way too easy to read. She either was just an envoy of the clan, which he doubted because they only rely on themselves, or a young, inexperienced and amateurish assassin. The government envoy found himself thinking how deplorable that was. A child assassin? Only someone as twisted as the Shiota Clan's head could do something like that. Not wanting to imagine what her life was like, he spoke again.

"Do you have it?" He asked.

Instead of replying, Nagisa reached down her boot and pulled out the disk that she handed to Karasuma. He immediately went to the desk and inserted the tiny device in his computer. Nagisa didn't move from her spot and looked around. The room was practically empty and the bed was made. On top of it was a black bag, the sort businessmen use to travel quickly and efficiently. But Nagisa hadn't missed the man's shoulder holster. His composed and almost cold attitude reminded her of men who'd seen death. She was certain he was a military man or at least had been. The bluenette's eyes turned to the blond woman that was leaning against the wall, arms crossed. She looked irritated. She was wearing the red dress from before. The way she'd threatened Nagisa left no doubt in the assassin's mind that she was a pro. But she couldn't find a single matching vibe between these two. There was no way they could be partners. The auras they emitted were completely different. The woman caught her staring and threw her a pissed off look.

"What are you staring at?"

"I'm sorry." Replied Nagisa quickly looking away.

This time, however, the woman kept her eyes on her. "Are you sure you're really a member of the Shiota Clan and not a poser kid?" She asked.

Nagisa sighed before replying. "If only." She whispered, loud enough for the woman to hear her. "Hum, can I ask you your name?" She asked, trying to change the subject.

"You seriously think I'll give my identity to some brat from the Shiota Clan? In your dreams kid." She shot down.

"Irina, shut up." Said Karasuma without even turning around. "I'm trying to focus."

She suddenly lost all composure and looked flustered. "K-Karasuma! Don't just give away my name so easily!"

"This piece of work is Irina Jelavic..." Started the man.

"STOP IT!"

Anger suddenly showed on his face as well and he finally turned to face her. "Then stop being a pain and be quiet!"

Tears appeared at the corner of her eyes and she kept whining. "Don't you care if the Shiota Clan comes to assassinate me in my sleep? You'd be so remorseful!"

"I'll at least be thankful for the silence." He said before turning back to his computer.

"You're so mean!" She cried.

"Hum, excuse me?" Said the girl feeling awkward watching this drama scene. They both looked at her. "Are you two partners?"

"Of course not." Replied the man with a reproachful voice. "There's no way anyone can handle her."

"Please, I'm an assassin." Suddenly spouted the woman, who somehow had her superior attitude back. "I work alone."

The bluenette's eyes widened in surprise, and Karasuma brought his hand to his forehead. "Since when do you need my help to blow up your own cover?" He said, shaking his head and focusing on his computer again.

"I-it's not my fault!" Squealed the woman. "It's because of that girl..."

Nagisa couldn't help but laugh at how ridiculous that woman was. She might be an excellent assassin but it would be obvious to anyone that she was crushing on the man. Not very professional if you asked her. So even if they didn't work together, they knew each other and were on good terms (more or less). Nagisa thought that that might be a good moment to ask them. But she'd had some bad experiences interrupting adults while they were busy. Especially those of the Clan. So she patiently waited for the man to be done. She looked out the window. The storm was as bad as when it'd started. Will it ever stop?

'I wonder what Karma's doing right now?' She thought, letting out a sigh.

The petite girl couldn't really put her finger on what was going on with her, but she somehow missed the red-head's happy-go-lucky attitude. She imagined him enjoying the hot water of the indoor baths, a glass of coke in his hand, laughing at people slipping on the wet floor. The thought made her smile, before she realized what she was thinking and her face turned crimson. She brought her hands to cover it, hoping the woman hadn't noticed. Unfortunately for her she had.

"What are you thinking about?" She asked.

"N-nothing."

A smirk appeared on the woman's face for the first time. She approached Nagisa who backed up into the wall worried about what she was going to do. The bluenette instinctively brought her hands together behind her back, ready to grab her knife. The woman leaned over her, still smiling.

"You're not fooling me, short stuff." She said. "I know that look on your face."

"Huh?"

The blond woman backed up and triumphantly pointed a finger into Nagisa's confused face. "You have a crush!" Declared Irina.

"W-what? No, I don't!" Protested Nagisa suddenly flustered. 'How the hell did she even know I was thinking of a guy?'

"Don't play dumb, it's normal for girls your age to fall in love right at the sight of a handsome and hot guy." She explained, suddenly sounding like a teacher.

But Irina's eyes suddenly became those of an angry tiger again and Nagisa tensed up. 'What now?' She suddenly leaned closer to her and whispered so that Karasuma wouldn't hear. "Just so you know, Karasuma is mine! I won't back down even if my opponent is a fifteen year old, you hear?"

Nagisa relaxed and lifted her hands. "You don't have to worry about that. It's not like I'll ever be aloud to go out with a guy."

Irina's face softened and she looked at the kid curiously. "Why? Are you parents that stuck up?"

"That's not even close to the issue..."

"Irina, leave her be." Ordered Karasuma, who actually bothered looking up from his computer to make sure the blond assassin did what she was told.

Nagisa wasn't aloud to date, and if the head of the Shiota Clan ever aloud her to be with a guy, it would be a marriage decided by her. The bluenette wondered if her mother still considered her the heir to the Clan. Probably not, but she hadn't been publicly disowned yet. Karasuma getting up from his chair pulled her out of her thoughts.

"The information is all here." He confirmed, before presenting her a USB key.

"What is it?" She asked taking it.

"Your Clan regularly exchanges information with us. In return we pay them, and stay out of their business. What the Head asked for is in there."

"Alright." Replied Nagisa before putting the small device in her boot.

"Now I have a question for you, Nagisa Shiota."

"Yes?"

"Do you know anything about the jamming that'd been blocking all communications?"

What a coincidence! And a lucky one for the young assassin. "That's what I wanted to tell you about. Does Lovro mean anything to you?"

"Lovro? You mean the famous phantom smuggler that we've been trying to get our hands on forever?"

"Probably. Well he's here, with a bunch of mercenaries." Explained the blue haired girl. "They caused the jamming. They're on the last floor, and their delivering some weird red pills, camouflaged as painkillers."

She took her black bag off her back and searched through it before pulling out the small bottle she'd grabbed from the metal trunk. She handed it to the agent who grabbed it and examined the contents.

"I've never seen these type of illegal merc before. What about you?" He asked Irina, showing her the red pills.

After a long glance she shook her head. "No never."

"Do you think it might be a drug?"

"If it is, then it's not the stuff you get in regular traffic." Said the woman very seriously. "Lovro doesn't do that. He's specialized in transporting bizarre merchandise. He'd never traffic classic crack. "

"I heard the mercenaries say that it was a failed product. That all the subjects used died and that even the only one left is still a failure. Also, they're meeting a client here to deliver it to them right now."

"A client huh?" Said Karasuma before putting the bottle in his pocket. "Lovro might think he's delivering rare stuff, but this could be a new type of drug imported in Japan. If this is the case, I have to make sure who's receiving this and what they want to do with it."

"You're national security?" Asked Nagisa.

Karasuma nodded. Nagisa was not expecting that. Her mother's profession and this guy's couldn't be more contradictory or opposite. But every government has it's dark forces. She guessed her Clan was one of those, practical for dirty business and top secret stuff.

"But how are you going to apprehend Lovro and the client?" Asked Irina. "They're both surrounded by mercenaries. That's what you said, right kid?"

Nagisa nodded. "Not to mention they can take hostages anytime they want. This place is filled with rich kids."

"Isn't it better to just ignore it?" Suggested the blond woman. "How are you gonna pull this off on your own? It's impossible."

"I'm not on my own." Replied the man, before looking at her.

"M-me?" She exclaimed in disbelief. "Don't joke Karasuma. I'm all for giving you a hand. But I'm an infiltrator! I won't be of any use in a raid!"

"Who said anything about a raid? There's only three of us, so of course that's not the right strategy. For one, we'll just try to get a better look at the buyer. They won't be able to run away, not with that weather."

"Three?" Said Irina. "You want to bring the kid into this? She's just a brat."

"No she's not. She's a member of the Shiota Clan. That makes her anything but an ordinary kid. Right?"

Nagisa said quiet for a while. She hadn't expected to be dragged into a full counter measure team to go against Lovro. And to be perfectly honest, the odds were not on their side. These guys had the entire place under surveillance and even worse they were looking for her.

"I'm not sure what I can do. I'm really not that big of a help. I can't fight very well."

"Even if you don't know how to fight, having an extra pair of eyes and ears is always useful. Not gonna lie, it's going to be dangerous. Knowing that, will you consider helping us out?"

'The faster this conflict was resolved the faster I can go home.' Thought the bluenette. "I'll do my best. But like I said I'm not really helpful. But I might know someone who is."

* * *

 **Final floor**

"I have to say, I didn't imagine you'd look like that..." Commented the Russian dealer when he finally met his client face to face.

"It really shouldn't matter what I look like, as long as I've got the brains to do what I want." Replied the client. "Perhaps you're the one getting too old, Lovro."

"I didn't mean to offend you. A client is a client, and I treat them alike no matter where they come from or how they look."

"How noble of you." Ironically replied the client smiling. "Let's get down to business. Do you have everything?"

"See for yourself."

The Russian dealer gave an order to his men in his mother-tongue and two of them opened all the metal trunks. There were a total of ten. Three of them contained little bottles tagged Painkillers. But the other seven contained small syringes by sets of six, each filled with a transparent liquid. The client's eyes inspected every piece of merchandise of every trunk very carefully. Lovro waited patiently for him to be finished. He was used to difficult deals where clients wanted to inspect everything themselves and make sure everything was there dozens of time. After a few minutes of inspecting, the client turned to one of his own men.

"Akabane, you're up."

"Yeah, yeah, I know." Replied the red head stepping into the light.

Lovro's eyes widened slightly. Not only was his client a runt, one of his lapdogs seemed to be exactly the same age. Although, contrary to his boss, this one didn't seem to have a hint of interest for what was going on. Usually, there were two types of newbies in dealing. The extremely jumpy one who were nervous from beginning to end. It was wiser not to give those any firearms. Or, the very quiet and withdrawn type, trying to be forgotten by the big pawns. This kid was neither, and he'd never seen him before while dealing with this faction. His eyes were like those of a dead fish, he was clearly unhappy to be here. The black choker around his neck might have been the reason for that. He was carrying a bag which seemed to contain chemistry equipment, like test tubes and products in tiny containers. The red-head grabbed one of the syringes in the bunch and emptied it in a test tube. He then added water and the liquid turned slightly greenish. He added a few drops of another transparent liquid from another container, before closing the tube and shaking it a little. It turned dark purple.

"Positive. This is the formula." Stated the red-head before standing up back up. "They got the real stuff."

"Of course it is." Said Lovro calmly. "I never deliver anything other than what is asked and always in perfect condition. Otherwise it's bad for business."

"Really?" Said the short client. "Then would you care to enlighten me on a certain problem? Why is there a Painkiller bottle missing? I don't appreciate getting stolen from."

He asked this pointing at one of the three metal trunks that contained the medical bottles. Indeed, there was one distinct empty spot in the top row. Lovro immediately made his way to the trunk and looked closer to be sure his eyes weren't deceiving him. There was indeed a bottle missing.

"I don't understand." He exclaimed, looking at the merchandise in confusion. "I verified myself that everything was there before we departed from China."

"He's telling the truth boss, hun." Said Grip, earning himself the attention of the room. "I checked myself when the merc got delivered. There wasn't anything missing."

The number called Five leaned towards Eight and whispered. "Do you think maybe it's our rat?"

"A rat?" Said the short client. "What rat?"

The numbers looked at each other and then at Lovro, uncertain as to what to answer. Knowing that this client was going to want an explanation, the Russian dealer sighed before explaining their rat situation.

"So you're telling us a little girl saw you sneak in to the hotel, managed to knock one of your men out AND steal a piece of your merchandise right under your nose. Does that sound about right?" Said Karma, as a proud and scornful smirk appeared on his face. "Some pros you guys are! I could've done better by myself."

"What did you say, you stupid brat?" Growled Four, gripping his gun.

"I'm just saying that your reputation is nothing but a load of crap." He said with his usual happy-go-lucky attitude, that only seemed to anger the young mercenary more. "I mean seriously : can't even deliver a package without loosing something and getting spotted? You guys are pathetic."

"You want to start something, huh?! Get over here you son of a … "

Before he could finish his sentence, a hand grabbed him by the throat and cut off his breath. Four found himself tip toeing to stay in contact with the ground. "Piece of advice you got this backwards. You gotta bash my face in before you can run your mouth." He whispered with a threatening voice.

"Down, boy." Ordered the boss.

Karma shrugged and then let go off his prey who fell to his knees and coughed loudly to try and regain his breath.

Five spoke again. "Wait, Mr Grip, didn't you see the rat when we all got out of the room because of the the explosion?"

"That's right, hun. I caught a glimpse." Confirmed the giant, raising his arm. "Little mice stabbed me in the hand. She knew where to hurt me. That wasn't an ordinary brat. But I don't remember her carrying anything. But then again, hun, these bottles are small and easy to hide."

The short boss sighed and placed a hand on his face. "So we have more than a little problem now. No matter, I'll deal with it later. I suppose the Colonel would want me to handle this on my own. Failure is not an option." He muttered that last part to himself so that no one would hear.

Removing his hand from his face he scanned the room one more time. Then he looked at each of his four lackeys before turning to the Russian dealer.

"Well at least, you'll have lived up to your reputation until the end."

"What are you talking about?" Exclaimed Lovro.

A nasty smirk was all he got for an answer, before two of his man dropped to the ground lifeless having been shot in the head by the gun wielder. Two others screamed in agony as their skulls were being crushed in Grip's enormous clutches. The remaining four were choking on some poison after having been gazed by Smog. Lovro stared in horror but quickly got over it. After all, he'd always known that this job was dangerous and that some clients would try to silence him. Taking a smoke grenade out of his coat, the dealer tossed it to the ground, fuming the entire room. Lovro ran out the door under the cover of the white smoke. The smoke died away, and the short boss turned to the red-head who hadn't budged from his place. He grabbed some sort of small remote out of his pocket and placed his thumb on the red button.

"Go." He ordered, throwing the other boy a threatening look.

Karma smirked back and grabbed a syringe from the trunk. "Easy now. No need to be so aggressive. You know that makes me nervous." He declared before shoving the needle in his own neck.

* * *

'What was that all about?' Wondered Lovro as he ran. 'I've been doing business with the Asano faction for years. They're regulars, so why would they decide to silence me now? Whatever I delivered to them must be worth a lot for them to go that far.'

"But who the hell is that little brat leading them?" He muttered.

"You should have asked him before you left in such a hurry." Muttered a voice right behind him, before chuckling.

The only thing Lovro saw when he turned around were big yellow eyes. His mind barely had the time to think 'what the hell are you?' Something slashed the air, and then there was nothing but pain.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

"Sorry about that." Added the voice. "It's nothing personal."

* * *

 **OOOOOOHHHHH, freaky! What was that thing that attacked Lovro I wonder...**

 **PLEASE REVIEW!**


	6. Trustworthy?

**Hi guys! Yes, yes I know it's been forever. But I have tons of work this year since I'm getting a BA. But I promise I'll get writing seriously starting April, when most of my work will be done.**

 **In the meantime, Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Flashback, Karasuma's room.**

" _Are you sure this guy is trustworthy? Seems to me like he knows a little too much about what's going on." Said Irina._

" _Well he helped me three times already." Replied Nagisa. "But it's true that he seems kind of off. And he has a terrible personality."_

" _You hear that Karasuma?"_

" _Well, we're badly short-handed, it wouldn't hurt to have an extra pair of hands. Nagisa, try bringing him here. I'll see if he's the kind of troublemaker I can deal with or not."_

" _Alright, but he'll be hard to convince."_

 **End of flashback**

"Karasuma, are you sure you want to involve the kid?" Asked the foreign woman, for once talking to him seriously and without squealing like a fangirl. Finally, Irina Jelavic had grasped the atmosphere and it wasn't too early.

"I told you, she's far from an ordinary kid." Said the government envoy, while taking some clothes out of his wardrobe. "You saw what was in her bag. If she can use all of that, she's much more useful than what you might think."

"That's not what I mean." Insisted the blonde. "She's fifteen."

"What were you doing when you were fifteen Irina?" He stopped what he was doing and looked at her.

The woman was surprised that he even brought that up. Her past was one thing that made Irina really reflect on how she judged others. She frowned. "I was completing my first mission." That was the nice way to say she'd taken someone's life for the first time. "I'm a special case, you know that."

"You're a child orphaned in a war and trained to kill. She was raised in a clan of assassins. I fail to see your point."

"That's just the thing Karasuma. It doesn't bother me. What bother's me is that you seem fine with it."

"Don't ever say that to me, Irina." Snapped the man, for once anger clearly showing. "Sending children to kill is not and will never be something I agree to."

"So why did you agree to let her in on this?"

"I told you, confrontation is not the objective. We need to find out who that client is and if possible make contact with the main land so that they can intervene in time. For that we're gonna need more hands. By the way, you're a terrible liar?"

"Excuse me? I'm a professional undercover assassin! How am I a bad liar?" She growled, shocked.

"You're a bad liar when your real emotions are showing. Admit it, you're worried about that kid."

She opened her mouth to retort but her voice died in her throat. She found nothing to reply so she closed her mouth and looked away, frowning. "I'm in a business where you can't allow yourself to feel for others. Otherwise you're no good. But her... I can't believe she's actually from the Shiota clan. There the best in all of Asia. I can tell you already that she's not gonna make it past twenty in this life."

"My point exactly." Replied Karasuma. "You two are alike in a way."

"Are you saying I can't do my job?"

"I'm saying you're not made for this life Irina." The look he threw her was determined and intense. "You try to convince yourself that the emotions don't affect you but that's a lie."

"What would you know?"

"I've been in the special forces. I've seen real killers. You're not one of them."

Irina sighed loudly, annoyed. She'd had that conversation before with Karasuma. But she wasn't getting why he was so insistent on the subject. She was an assassin and she always will be. Nothing would ever change that. Not even Karasuma. She turned around to give him another piece of her mind when she realized that he was taking his shirt off. That perfect musculature was irresistible to any woman. Damn it, she was the one doing the seducing usually. Why was this guy so immune to her, and her so not to him! Even though his back was turned, Karasuma could feel a pair of eyes trying to burn holes in his back.

"You're a piece of work you know that? At least try to not drool on my bed." He threatened as his eyebrow twitched angrily.

"Too late." She muttered covering her nose.

The government agent ignore that last comment quickly put on a short sleeves blue shirt before taking out his gun and checking how much ammo he had.

"Sooo..." Said Irina. "Do you have a plan?"

"That depends. Are you at the top of your game?"

She only smirked in response. "Just who do you think I am?"

"Go to your room and get what you need. I need to know how much ammo you have."

"You should come with me." She replied, flapping her eyelashes and getting closer to the man. "Who knows? Some mean assassin out their might be out to get me."

"We can't be seen together. There are surveillance cameras everywhere on the lower floors." He replied professionally ignoring her ridiculous flirting he was all too familiar with.

Without replying the woman stood up and walked out of the room, still pouting though. She walked down the hallway to return to her room. Really that Karasuma... what a jerk! He could at least pretend to fall for her attempts. She took out her card and was about to insert it when she noticed that there was a red stain on the handle. Irina knew better than to ignore it. Readying her gun, she kicked her door open. She quickly spotted the figure sitting on the floor and against the wall.

"Stay where you are, Mister." She said. "Or you'll end up with a bullet in between the eyes."

"Irina, don't shoot..." Replied a deep masculine voice she knew very well.

The blond woman quickly pressed the light button, illuminating the room. Her mouth dropped open when she saw the Russian dealer in a dark coat bleeding all over her floor.

"L-lovro?!" She exclaimed.

* * *

Nagisa knocked on the door of the only person she thought could help them. Karasuma had told her to meet up with them in his room when she was done. That is if Karma accepted to help them out, and the bluenette wasn't so sure of that. The words he spoke to her still intrigued her.

'What did he mean by I won't always be able to be your ally?' She wondered.

As no one opened the door, she knocked again. And again, no one answered. She pressed her ear against the wooden door and listened carefully. She could hear the faint sound of water running and something else but she wasn't sure what it was. Nagisa was sure of it : there was someone in there. Thinking that maybe the mischievous red-head couldn't hear her, the petite girl looked around to make sure no one was here, before taking out a strange electronic card linked by wires to a small remote. She placed it in the key scanner, and the light on the door turned red. After a few beeps and a quick numerical diagnosis, the beep turned green and the bluenette heard the electronic lock open. She quickly put her tools away and entered the room, making sure to close the door behind her. The room was in the dark. The only source of light was coming from the bathroom. Nagisa could hear the water running but no other noise. But she was certain to have heard something else. She approached the door and slowly extended her hand to grab the handle. But just as she was about to grab it the door flew open forcing her to take a step back to avoid taking it. But before she could even recover, something heavy collided with her, grabbing her around the waist and pushed her to the ground. The air was pushed out of her lungs, making her cough. But almost immediately, something cold and sharp touched her neck.

"A little loud for a thief, don't you think?" Said a cheery voice, the bluenette knew all too well.

Of course it was dark he couldn't see her. "Karma! It's me!" She quickly said to avoid getting slaughtered.

However she froze when she looked up. The red-head's eyes were glowing in the dark. The light from the bathroom aloud her to discern that devilish smirk on his face. Could he see her completely? He pulled the blade away from her throat.

"I'm gonna start thinking that you can't do anything without me shorty." He commented, before licking the naked blade and putting it away. The red devil then grabbed her wrists and held them down on each side of her head. "Or maybe you wanted something else..."

Her cheeks flamed up when she realized how close he was to her face and in what position they were. And also that he was bare chested, again. "K-Karma! Get off of me!"

"Huh, why?" He replied, as amused as ever. "I thought you liked staring at my chest."

"I'm serious!" Protested the wannabe assassin, before she caught a strange iron scent.

She knew that smell. How many times had she smelled it ever since she was a child? Blood. She turned her head to look at the hand holding down her wrist. She gasped when she saw that it was covered in blood.

"K-Karma? Is that … blood?"

He made a confused face before bringing his hand up to his face and looking at it. "Oh, yeah. I forgot about that."

"Are you injured?"

He smirked evilly at her again. "Would it reassure you if I told you it wasn't mine?"

Nagisa thought her heart was going to stop. The boy licked his hand slowly, sending shivers down her spine. Something was wrong, she could feel it in her bones. Her instincts were screaming at her to get away as fast as she could. But at the same time, she was paralyzed. The red devil's eyes on her were enough to dissuade her from moving. She couldn't help but shake though. She knew from the moment she laid eyes on him he wasn't an ordinary guy, but... to think that he'd literally have blood on his hands? She hadn't thought of it as a possibility. But with the amount of blood there was, she couldn't deny that whoever it belonged to might very possibly not be alive anymore.

"Karma, are you... an assassin?"

"Hmm. Don't know if that's the right way to describe what I am, shorty. Assassins get payed."

Nagisa froze altogether. He didn't get paid so it wasn't a job. Was he... actually enjoying this? The boy felt her shake under him again which made him want to mess with her even more. "What's the matter Nagisa? You look like you've seen a ghost. Now what should I do with you?"

"Huh?"

"I thought I told you not to pry, but here you are snooping in stuff that aren't any of your business. You're a bad kid Nagisa."

"Look who's talking!" Snapped back the bluenette as her cheeks turned crimson. "Karma, get off me!"

"You came here to ask me something right?" He said ignoring her plea. "I'm waiting."

"Get off me first!" She ordered, starting to get angry.

"Not a chance." His smirk suddenly became darker. "Come on, fess up. Otherwise, well, I'll have no choice but to punish you. And just a heads up, you won't enjoy it." He licked his lips slowly while eying her like she was a piece of cake.

'Darn it! Why won't he listen? Well technically he is listening but...'

The sound of a phone ringing. It was coming from the red-haired boy's pocket. He clicked his tongue on his teeth, annoyed before taking the device out of his pocket and pressed the answer button. "You said you were giving me twelve hours to rest. Can't you do anything without me?"

" _Need I remind you that I can blow up your head with a push of a button, Akabane?"_

Nagisa couldn't hear the voice of the caller. "Karma?" She whispered. "Who..."

A hand grabbed her face to cover her mouth and violently sent her back to the ground. She grabbed his hand in order to free herself, as the strong grip was hurting her, but it turned out to be useless. Just how strong was he? Although, he was putting this much force into keeping her quiet, his entire focus seemed to be on the phone.

'Wait a minute? How can he use his phone with the jamming?'

"What the hell do you want this time? Technically you don't need me anymore."

" _I have another job for you."_

"Are you serious right now?" Nagisa felt his anger as his grip on her face tightened even more.

" _Do what you're told Akabane. As long as this mission isn't complete, you'll be keeping that collar. So stop whining and get on with it, Mr failure."_

"Oh, you did not just go there." Whispered the redhead, with a murderous tone. "If you know what's good for you, you'll never take this choker off me."

" _Threaten me all you want, it won't change a damn thing. Now shut up and pay attention : I want you to find the government envoy you talked about. Once you track them down, make sure they don't know anything about us."_

"And if they do?"

" _Terminate."_

"You bastard." Said the red devil grinning even though an angry fire was burning in his eyes. "You're using me as a tool so that you can keep your hands clean? I guess I shouldn't be surprised. You're exactly like your father."

" _Don't you dare compare me to him, you yapping mutt. Get moving."_

A beeping sound indicated that the call had ended. Karma took the phone away from his ear and looked at it for a moment, hesitating to crush it. A squirming Nagisa is what pulled him out of his angry thoughts.

" 'arma! 'an't brea'!" Her muffled voice said.

The redhead loosened his grip and quickly took his hand back, allowing her to take air and pant to catch her breath. "Sorry. I forgot about you for a second." He apologized putting his phone back in his pocket.

"You nearly chocked me!"

"Hey I said sorry." He replied smiling. "Now that I'm done with the boring stuff how about you tell me what you came here for? And before you ask, no I'm not moving until you tell me."

The young assassin sighed in defeat. "You're a handful." She muttered.

"It's what I do. You're welcome."

"I'm done with my mission." She declared. "But my contact and I are both stuck here. We're trying to find out what those guys on the last floor are doing. And who they're delivering their merchandise to."

Nagisa stopped to look at the boy that was pinning her down. His smile had vanished and the way he was looking at her was making her uncomfortable. It frighteningly resembled the stares of her fellow clan members. The stares that despised her, and showed her implicit animosity. However, in his eyes, it seemed more like anger mixed with annoyance.

"Why the hell would your contact want to know about some crack traffic?" He asked.

"Well... he's..." She hesitated for a minute, but then concluded that if she was to ask for his help, he'd have to know eventually. "He's national security. And since I managed to take one of their bottles, he thinks it might be a new drug traffic... He wants to find out who the client is... AH!"

She let out a cry of surprise when the red devil suddenly grabbed her arms and pulled her up to her feet in one swift movement. Nagisa found herself half an inch away from his bare chest. He kept one of her hands in his and grabbed her chin with the other. Just like he hoped, her face turned crimson red and although he couldn't see it very well in the dark, he could feel her skin getting warmer. However, the time for jokes was running out. The bluenette was paralyzed. Her instincts told her that he wasn't joking around like before.

"Is it compulsive? That need you have to get in trouble Nagisa? Or maybe you're a thrill seeker and can't get enough adrenaline pumping through your system." He said without a single trace of amusement for once.

"W-what? No! I just want to contact the clan and get out of this island."

"The guys after you are no small fry. They're killers." He explained, letting go off her all together. Nagisa felt that they were too close, but even though he wasn't holding her anymore, she couldn't find the courage to take a step back.

"How do you know that?"

"I'm a genius, I know things." He immediately replied. "The best thing for you to do would be to hide until they're gone. Why do you insist on prying? If your contact wants to get in trouble it shouldn't be any of your business."

She averted her eyes and looked down. "Because... because it's the right thing to do." She muttered.

She closed her eyes and waited for him to say something degrading, but instead he started laughing. Laughing hysterically for a few seconds, holding his stomach like it was hurting him.

"Hahahahahahaha! I can't believe you! You're an assassin, raised by assassins, trained by assassins! And you can't stop thinking about morals, can you? Hahahahahaha! You're so weird!"

Nagisa clenched her fists, and kept her eyes closed a little longer. It allowed her to focus and not let her complexes and negative thought overwhelm her again. She finally opened her eyes again and looked at the red devil with an expression of seriousness and yet still sad.

"Please. Help me Karma."

He stopped laughing, but his smile remained this time. "Do you remember my warning Nagisa?"

"To not pry?"

"Before that."

The bluenette searched her memories. "That you might not be able to be my ally anymore."

"The time is running short. Knowing that, you still want my help?"

She hesitated. Nagisa wasn't sure that he was entirely sure what he meant by that. Perhaps he had to leave, or maybe he had other things to do. But there was something about the redhead that made her want to not leave him alone. And also, he was incredibly smart. She was certain of that. And right now she could use smart.

"If you allow me, I'd like to use your skills as much as I can."

This time he showed his teeth and smirked. "Alright. I hope you know that means I get to toy with you for a while."

"What?" She exclaimed.

"Well, you don't expect me to let this chance pass, do you? So you better prepare yourself... shorty." He said winking.

It was at this moment that Nagisa knew... she might have made an enormous mistake by striking a deal with this devil. The conversation had drifted so much, that the bluenette completely forgot about the now almost dry blood on his hands.

* * *

 **Shiota clan compound house**

Hiromi Shiota was sitting on the floor of her room. The sliding doors had been pushed open completely, allowing her to have a nice view of the Japanese styled garden. It was very quiet in the compound today, even though most of the clan members were present. When you're trained in the old art of assassination and ninjutsu, you learn to be quiet. A soft but tenacious wind was playing with her hair as it entered and exited her room. There wasn't a hint of a smile on her face to show that she was appreciating the sun, the chant of the birds and the wind. The compound was in the mountains in the middle of a very thick forest. Appropriate one would say for a clan of assassins. However, Hiromi's thoughts were distant from all of this. They were focused on one particular assassin that she'd sent on a simple mission. Why that assassin and that mission in particular? None other than the Head of the Shiota clan knew, and it would take more than the flames of hell to make her spill. The short haired woman brought her tea cup to her lips again and drank from it.

"Lady Shiota? It's me, Hana."

"Come in." Ordered the woman, without even turning around.

A young woman in a kimono entered the room and bowed respectfully. The children of the clan who had too weak constitutions to handle the training were raised to serve those who were. When they turned eighteen, they were aloud to either leave and return to the real world or keep serving the assassins. Nonetheless they were still taught to defend themselves and strengthening their intellect and mental strength was not taken lightly. Hana was one of those.

"Are you finished with your tea, Lady Shiota? If not I can come back later."

"How is your child doing?" Suddenly asked the Head of the clan.

"He's doing very well." Replied the young woman, surprised by the Head's question. "He's already started speaking."

"I see. Be sure that he grows strong."

"I will my Lady. My husband and I are making sure of that."

Once more, Hiromi brought her cup to her lips and the wind entered the room and played with her hair again. But as her eyes were closed she felt an almost imperceptible irregularity. She dropped her cup of tea and before it hit the ground, a sharp and thin blade was touching her throat and a hand was placed on her shoulder. Hana jumped to her feet and screamed in fright. A man was crouching behind the Head of the clan, holding a blade at her throat. The man was … handsome to say the least and he was smiling like a child enjoying a good moment.

"How careless of you, Lady Shiota." Said the newcomer, not paying the slightest bit of attention to Hana. "I thought your house would be guarded better than that."

"Not careless enough as to let you get this close without retribution." She replied, putting a little more pressure on the short sword she'd managed to unsheathe and was now pressing against the stomach of her attacker.

Hanna grabbed the wakizashi knife that was hidden in he kimono, unsheathed the blade, and about to cry out for help. But Hiromi lifted a hand.

"Stand down." She ordered.

"Huh?" Let out the servant, confused.

"This man could kill both of us before you even thought of crying out for help." Calmly explained the assassin. "Besides, he is my guest. Make sure no one disturbs us."

"But my Lady..."

"OUT!" Shouted Hiromi, still not moving an inch.

The Head of the Shiota clan was famous for not tolerating any disobedience to her orders. Here she was law and ruled with an iron fist. Hana, still confused and not entirely reassured waited a few seconds before bowing.

"As you wish." She said before exiting the room and closing the sliding door behind her.

The man behind Hiromi chuckled. "What an adorable servant you have, Lady Shiota."

"What are you doing here, you lecher?" She asked, uninterested by his antics.

"Straight to business I see. Your reputation precedes you." Said the man before taking back his knife and taking a few steps back before sitting down properly. "I'm here because you need me."

The assassin turned around and faced her guest, still showing no sign of emotion on her face. However, when he saw her eyes, the man immediately knew that something bothered the older woman.

"How insolent of you, to think so highly of yourself." She said, scornfully. "But if you are who I think you are, I suppose in a way, you've earned it. You need me as well, don't you?"

"Indeed, how insightful of you." Complimented the man. "I don't have the money to pay you so I'll do anything you ask of me, if you can give me the information I'm looking for. After all, your clan is the best at keeping track of everything in the world of shadows we assassins roam, right?"

"You understand quickly. That saves time."

Even though she'd heard numerous times about him, this was the first time Hiromi laid eyes on him. He looked quite ordinary, but that was exactly what made him so dangerous. This man excelled in every domain necessary to assassination, and she just had to look at him to know that. She intended to make use of him for this task. That one task she thought was impossible for her.

"So, what can this humble God of Death do for you, Lady Shiota?"

* * *

 **Suspense! PLEASE REVIEW!**


	7. Tails of the first coin

**Hi everyone! So... I have no valid excuse for the tardiness except for no inspiration. But I got it back now, so I hope it's to your liking!**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

Karma and the bluenette walked side by side down the halls, heading towards the elevators. The red-head seemed to be lost in his thoughts, while the black sheep of the Shiota Clan risked glancing at him. She couldn't help but wonder if she'd made an enormous mistake by asking for that guy's help. He was shadier than any assassin she'd ever met. So what pushed her to ask him. Maybe because he saved her life, she felt that he wasn't that bad...

"Hum, Karma?"

"Hmm?"

"What's that thing around your neck? That chocker. It looks like it's electronic."

"Oh this thing?" His playful smirk appeared on his face. "I'll tell you if you tell me what happened to your legs?"

She tensed up when he mentioned her wounds, and bit her lips in frustration, she'd hoped he'd have forgotten about them. But this was Karma after all. He probably wouldn't let it go.

"Forget it then." She replied lowering her head.

The red-head smiled at her. He wanted to tease her, even though he could tell how sour the subject was for the petite girl. No matter how he looked at her, she didn't belong in that world of assassin. Even if she was the daughter of the chief.

"Okay, then I'll tell you if you tell me why you're not leaving your clan."

"Seriously? Why are you so interested in my personal life?"

"I just am. I like knowing who's in front of me, especially someone I'd like to play with as long as long possible."

"You're not gonna leave me alone are you?" She said, sighing.

"Warned you." He mocked sticking his tongue out.

Just what had she gotten herself into? Nonetheless, the young assassin was glad to have Karma on their side. With his help, maybe they could get this story over with quickly and she could go home. Granted, her mother would probably kick her head off if she ever learned that she got helped by an outsider she knew practically nothing about, her own client that happened to be a government agent AND another assassin.

'Looks like Karma was right... In the end, I really am an incompetent assassin. I don't know why I'm surprised though.'

When they finally reached the government agent's room, Nagisa knocked on the door. "Come on in."

She pushed the door opened. "I brought him." She said as the red head followed her in.

"Nice to meet you." Declared the boy with that smile that was impossible to know if it was fake or genuine. "Name's Karma Akabane. Feel free to call me by my first name."

When Karasuma laid eyes on him and heard him speak, he felt his hair rise on the back of his neck. It was strange. This was the same sensation he felt when facing off with dangerous masterminds. But this one was a kid. He looked barely older than the girl. His first instinct was to neither underestimate nor trust this guy who was so laid back in his own presence.

"I'll cut right to the chase : who are you and why do you want to help us?"

"Well, I don't particularly want to help you. I'm tagging along cause Nagisa asked me to. As for who I am, I already told you. Karma."

"I was asking if you were an assassin or mercenary of any kind."

"Can't say that I am." He simply replied, shrugging.

'This kid is the handful. It's clear he doesn't want to tell us who he is and what he's really doing here.'

"Do you know what you're getting yourself into?" Asked the man from national security. "We're dealing with mercenaries and unknown merchandise traffic. It'll be dangerous and possibly deadly."

"I'm pretty sure that's why shorty asked me for help. And really, I'm game."

"I'll be honest, I don't trust you one bit."

"You shouldn't." That look of hungry wolf appeared in his eyes again as he spoke. "I'm a pretty awful guy. But you're in a pinch and you don't have a choice, so you're gonna keep me around anyway. Isn't that right Mr government agent? By the way, the only thing I signed up for was helping Nagisa get the communication back on and that's it. If you want to hire me, I'll need compensations."

Nagisa perked up at his words. "T-that's not what we agreed on!"

He ignored her and kept his eyes on the government agent. "Any job you give me I can do it. I'm a genius so it'll work out no prob. So do you want my help or not?"

"Why do I get a feeling that you know more than you let on?" Asked the man frowning.

"Cause I do. And before you ask, no, I'm not telling."

Karasuma eyed the red devil for a long moment before asking him to step out in the hallway. He then turned to Nagisa, addressing her with a low voice to make sure the newcomer couldn't hear in case he was eavesdropping.

"I have to say, this kid is the shadiest person I've ever met. And that includes professional assassins. No matter how I look at this, trusting him seems like a foolish move."

"Then... you think it's safer not to have him around." Replied Nagisa, lowering her eyes. It was strange but the declaration from the older man was clearly making her disappointed. She wondered why.

"What do you think?"

"Huh?"

"You're the one who suggested his help and brought him to me. You wouldn't have if you thought he couldn't be of any use. I'd like to hear your opinion."

Nagisa stared at the government agent in shock. This man was a professional, someone that would give everything to protect his country even his life. And this man... so respectable, so much more important than her... He was looking straight in her eyes and asking for her opinion like it mattered. Never in her life had the bluenette been in that position. When the Head of the clan would speak to her, or even if it was other assassins, she didn't have say in their conversations. Orders were orders. It was not up for debate or discussion. Especially since she was the worst of them all when it came to the job. This feeling of acknowledgment was new to the girl. Too knew. And somehow scary. She'd never had to voice out her opinion before which meant that she'd never really cared about them. Or about having them even. So it took a moment for Nagisa to gather her thoughts.

"Well... he's very skilled, I can tell just by looking at him. He's confident and even if he has ulterior motives for helping us, I'm pretty sure they don't have anything to do with you. I mean he's never met you before..."

"I'm not asking for your reasoning. I want your gut feeling."

"Gut feeling?"

Again the young assassin had to think to uncover the meaning of these words. What did she think of Karma? Logically speaking, nothing about him was trustworthy. So why did she want to trust him? She remembered that hint of sadness in his eyes, hidden behind the amusement. As though that amusement was meant to help forget about that sadness. Why did she seem to feel pity for this devil? She sighed before answering.

"I want to trust him."

She said no more, and waited for the older man's response. He stared at her for a long moment before sighing as well.

"I suppose we can use him. We're badly short-handed and he looks confident enough to know what he's doing. I'll trust your judgment on this. But if he causes trouble, we'll have to find another way. Just stay on guard, alright?" He said before turning towards the door. "Karma. Get back in here."

The red-haired boy walked back into the room, with the same smile he left with. He placed his hands behind his head. "So. What's the plan, Sir?"

"First off, we wait for..."

Karasuma had barely begun his sentence when someone loudly banged on the door. "Karasuma! Hurry up! Open the door!"

The man did what he was told and let the blond woman back in. She looked terrified and stopped a minute to catch her breath.

"What's the matter Irina?" Asked the government agent. "Calm down and explain."

"It's... Lovro." She said, in between heavy breaths. "I found him in my room. He's passed out right now. I gave him first aid and a transfusion, but I'm pretty sure he's in a coma."

"You can't be serious." Said Karasuma.

"Why would I lie about that?" Shouted the woman, angry. "He was messed up."

"Did he know you were here?"

"He's Lovro. He probably had a list of all the guest's names and room numbers. But that's not important right now."

"Lovro?" Said Karma. "Are we talking about the phantom smuggler?"

"You know him?"

"Sure. I know a lot of things."

"Anyways, that's not the issue!" Exclaimed Irina. "Stop interrupting me, tomato head!"

"Sorry Miss Bitch." Answered the boy, sticking his tongue out. "It's just that you seem pretty slow, so I thought I'd help you gather your thoughts."

"Miss WHAT?" Exclaimed the woman, going hysterical. "What the hell did you just call me? My name is Jelavic, you little punk! Is that how you treat your elders?"

"Sorry, didn't realize you were over forty Miss Bitch."

The woman fumed with rage and seemed to have forgotten all about why she was out of breath already. "Alright, that's it! I'm tossing you out, you foul-mouthed little piece of..."

"Irina, enough!" Shouted Karasuma, freezing her on the spot. "We don't have time to waste on petty fights. Karma, stop throwing oil on the fire. She's already a big enough pain as it is. Finish what you were saying Irina."

She sighed and calmed herself. "Lovro's wounds were strange. No bullet or knife wounds. They seemed more like scratch mark. Almost like some big animal attacked him."

"And before he passed out for good, he said something weird. Look out for the monster."

"Eeeeh?" Let out Karma who seemed interested. "So there's a monster in this hotel? Interesting. Looks like you got more trouble than anticipated. How about we stop wasting time and et down to business? If you're out of ideas, I've got one to get the communications back on."

Irina frowned. What was that weird and uncomfortable feeling she had when looking at him? His appearance was the biggest trap. If he didn't look like that, there would be no way in hell that she would believe that this kid was this young. He was shady and didn't put her at ease. Why in the world didn't Karasuma ask her for her advice before they started this weird buddy-buddy partnership?

"Alright, let's hear it." Said Karasuma, clearly interested by what the kid had to say.

* * *

 **Sixtieth floor**

"Karma, please explain to me again why you had me tagging along?" Whispered the bluenette, as the two teenagers were quietly making their way through the hallway of the sixtieth floor.

This was a bad idea, according to Nagisa. Scratch that, it was a terrible idea, period. The girl was even more alert to her surroundings than usual. Every small noise or slightest sign of movement made her jump out of her skin. Ironically, the boy that was leading the way seemed, no, was as relaxed as if he were on a field trip. That grin never left his face and as he didn't answer, the young assassin started to get annoyed as well as freaked out. She just didn't understand why they were here.

"Karma!" She whispered louder.

"If you're not quieter shorty, we're gonna get caught right away."

"Alright, that's it!" Said the bluenette stopping on the spot, exasperated. "I'm not taking another step until you tell me."

The red-haired boy laughed again and turned around. "Did you already forget the terms of our arrangement Nagisa? Where's the fun if I can't toy with you a little?"

"This is not funny!" She insisted. "Why are we here?"

"I didn't think you had the memory span of a gold fish. This is the sixtieth floor, where the security room that monitors all the surveillance and communication system is. If we want to get rid of the jamming, then this is the place to go."

"I know that! My question is why did you insist I come with you. I'm not an expert in high tech, Karma. I can sabotage electrical circuits but that's it! This is ridiculous! We don't know how many of them are there. How in the world are you expecting to..."

A hand on her mouth shut her up, the boy got closer to her and whispered. "I know you're freaked out but shooting is the best way to get us spotted, shorty."

He was right. She hadn't realized that she'd been raising her voice more and more this whole time. Amateur move. He mother would kill her for that. And there she thought she at least had the basics drilled into her. She was naturally a quiet person. The young assassin realized how freaked out she was and wrapped her arms around herself as goosebumps appeared all over her skin. She took a deep yet shaky breath trying to calm herself.

"Good girl." Said the red devil taking his hand back. "I didn't bring you along to rely on your skills with tech. In fact, I think I'd be pretty surprised if you tell me that you know how to turn your own phone on by yourself. In fact, I can probably do everything by myself while you, Karasuma and Miss Bitch enjoy the pool and a soda."

"Then why in the world..."

"Because." He interrupted before she could start screaming again. "I wanna see something."

"See something? Like what?"

"Like exactly what and how much you actually learned in your training."

That was it? She was tagging along for his entertainment? On one hand it didn't surprise her. If she knew one thing about Karma, is that he did things how he pleased, when it pleased him. On the other, the fear of the situation was gradually gaining on her and she did not appreciate it.

"Are you crazy? Look, I know you're planning to use me for humor yourself, but come on Karma." She said. "Can't it wait until after the life threatening situation is over?"

"No way." He replied, but this time it seemed like he was being very serious, although that smile never vanished. " This is the best possible situation for me to see just who you are Nagisa."

The bluenette frowned at him after a few moments of silence. "You made it pretty clear that I'm an incompetent assassin who doesn't belong in this world. What do you need more?"

"You see shorty, that's just the thing. You see, you told me that you couldn't leave your clan, even though you clearly suck at this gig. I can't think of any reason why they'd want to keep someone like you around, even if you do happen to be some badass's runt."

Why was he speaking to her like that again? It was like he was insulting her again. It was so condescending. Like when the high ranked and the Head of the clan spoke to her to remind her how worthless she was. Nagisa wanted to cry at those words. Her entire life she'd been confronted to that, so why was a complete stranger pushing it like that? In the end, maybe Karma truly didn't have any regards for other's feelings. But in those words, his brilliance showed as well. He'd pieced it all together without knowing that he was spot on. This devil really was... amazing and quite possibly very dangerous.

"W-what are you trying to say?" She asked.

"I'm saying there's a reason they're keeping you around. I want to find out what it is. And this is the perfect context I need."

"You're crazy." She let out.

"Thanks for the compliment. Shall we?"

Karma resumed his walk down the dark hallway, and Nagisa clenched her fists together before following him. Why was he making her so angry? This guy was a handful and she might have made an enormous mistake by asking him for help. The bluenette was pulled out of her thoughts when she bumped into his back. They'd reached a corner. The red head took a peek to see three men in suits guarding the metal door leading to the security room further away.

"There we go." He whispered before turning back to his petite companion. "You're up shorty."

Nagisa raised her eyebrows, confused. "Huh?"

"It's your job." Explained the boy with a cheerful smile. "Take out those three guys so we can get into that room and I can negate the jamming. That easy."

"What?!" She whispered as loud as she could. "Are you out of your mind?"

"Not really." He replied shrugging. "I'm not an assassin, that's your job. Although, killing them without knowing who their boss is is reckless, so it's better just to knock them out. Oh, and you'll have to do it as quietly as possible. Also, be quick, cause we can't let them alert the others. I'm not doing it, so it's up to you now."

That was wrong. Everything he was saying was wrong! There was no way she could take out three trained mercenaries like that on her own.

'I can't. I'm not good enough. I'm just not! If I try, I'll be... I'll be...'

She'd been placed in dangerous situations before, for exercise. But never before had her mother deliberately ordered her to throw herself in a situation she knew she shouldn't get out of. Her entire body started shaking and she looked at her feet, her eyes widened by anxiety.

"I...I can't." She let out. "I can't..."

"You can't, huh?"

Nagisa suddenly found herself shoved to the ground, landing on her backside. Surprised she looked up at Karma. The boy still had that smile on his face, but his yellow eyes were filled with anger and irritation. There was no doubt about it.

"K-Karma?"

"Looks like I figured out why you're so bad at this Nagisa." He said slowly, before getting way too close for comfort and kneeling down over her, their faces only inches apart from each other. Anguish squeezed the young assassin's heart. "You know, when a prey comes face to face with a predator there are two solutions. Fight or flight. Two sides of the same coin. Most preys pick flight, but I'll tell you a little secret Shorty."

He moved so fast that she didn't even realized he'd budged until he flipped opened her own switchblade and pointed it towards her face. "Flight is the smartest thing to do when facing someone stronger than you, every assassin is taught that. But the preys who pick fight and survive are the ones that become the strongest."

Karma then pressed the tip of the blade against her quivering lower lip. "And the ones who run away every time... are sure to get caught at some point."

She flinched in pain when the the metal tip slightly pierced through the skin of her lip. She'd endured much more painful things, but the shudder that travelled throughout her body after was unfamiliar. She couldn't stop staring at Karma's smiling yet clearly irritated face. The young assassin's own started heating in shame, and she felt the tears ready to burst. To hide that pathetic scenery, she looked down and remained silent, hoping the red head wouldn't push it any further. Indeed, Karma closed the knife and stood back up.

"But hey, if you're too inept to do anything, I guess I'll come up with something. Just so you know that'll cost you."

'So that's it huh? There just had to be another person in this world to do that...' Before licking the blood of her cut lip before the thick liquid could drip.

Karma peeked one more time to see if the guards had heard the noise or not. But it seemed that they hadn't moved from their spot. They didn't even have their guns out. Idiots. All he needed was a little distraction and he could take them out no problem.

"Alright Shorty, listen up. Hand over your bag and stay put while I..."

"The order has been given." Muttered the voice of the girl, flat and emotionless.

The red devil turned to his companion and was surprised to find her, on one knee, right beside him and looking through her little black bag of tricks. Her eyes were different. Her eyes were wide open but... empty. Was that the same girl that he'd almost made cry a minute ago? She took out a a thin black glove that she put on.

"What are you up to Shorty?" He asked, smiling. "I thought you couldn't do it."

"Mission's objective. Eliminate the obstacles blocking the way." She said, robotically and as if she hadn't heard him. It seemed like she was speaking to herself. "Details. Do not kill. Privilege discretion and efficiency. Let the mission begins."

With those words, the bluenette stood back up and stepped out into the hallway. Karma noted that her footsteps were silent, not making a sound. She walked at normal speed towards the group of men. Slowly. Slowly. Like a snake quietly approaching it's prey. They didn't notice anything until she was a foot away from the first one. He had barely looked up when the assassin hit him at lightening speed once in the solar plexus and twice at throat level. When he fell down, the two others noticed the girl's presence.

"Hey, you! Freeze!"

The first one reached for his gun, but before he could even point it, the girl clapped her hands in front of his face. For a moment, the man seemed paralyzed. Spinning on one leg, she sent her foot to collide with his head and smashed him against the wall, making him pass out instantly. With a similar move, she kicked the talkie walkie out of the hands of the third one who was about to call for help. A solid punch to the gut cut off his breath and the assassin slipped behind him, wrapping an arm around his neck. She squeezed until the man ceased to move and then released him.

Karma had been stunned the entire scene. It had all gone down so fast that he wondered if he wasn't dreaming. Then his familiar grin appeared on his face. "Well, well, how about that Nagisa?"

He got out of his corner and joined Nagisa who was checking the pulse of her victims and sinking what looked like paralytic needles in their necks. Once done, the assassin turned towards him, with those blank, emotionless eyes and said. "Targets neutralized. The mission has successfully been completed."

"Thanks for your hard work." Said the red head.

The moment he pronounced those words, the bluenette closed her eyes and starting falling as if she was passing out. The red head caught her before she could hit the ground.

"Aren't you full of surprises, Nagisa Shiota. Or should I call you the perfect assassin?"

* * *

 **I deeply apologize for that *** of a cliffhanger.**

 **PLEASE REVIEW!**


	8. Tails of the second coin

**Hi guys! Hope you're all doing well! Here's the next chapter!**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

" _I was wrong to expect this much from you, Nagisa. But you're also to blame. If you'd done exactly what you were told this wouldn't be happening, now would it?"_

" _I'm sorry! Please don't..."_

" _But I already told you. I'm not giving up on you. Not now not ever. I'll be gone for a while but when I come back, you better be ready."_

Nagisa's whole body tensed up and sweat dripped down her forehead. She clung to the piece of fabric that she was laying on. No matter how many times she'd had those dreams every time was just as terrifying as the first. But unlike in the times before, there was something more. Usually she felt cold despite the fact that she was sweating. This time she wasn't cold. On the contrary, she was warm. Like there was a cover of warmth wrapped around her. It made the confrontation of her dreams … somewhat not as frightening as usual. Because for once, _he_ didn't approach her. The warm cloak was protecting her.

"You gonna wake up anytime soon, Shorty?"

That sentence pulled the bluenette out of her sleep. She heard the sound of someone typing on a keyboard and then slowly opened her eyes. Realizing that her hand were gripping a shirt she looked up. Her eyes widened in shock when she saw that she was leaning on Karma's chest.

"Hi there!" He said with his usual happy voice. "Are you the same again?"

"Karma?!"

She fretted around and her cheeks turned crimson when she realized how he was holding her. He was sitting on a chair in the security room and she was on his laps and leaning on his chest. One of his arm was supporting her back, like she was a baby. Meanwhile his other arm was extended and typing on the keyboard of the security room. She quickly got up and he did nothing to stop her but laughed none the less at her hurry.

"Haha! What's wrong? Are my arms not comfortable?"

She quickly looked for another subject when her memory kicked in. She remembered what had happened before everything went black. "What happened?"

"You don't remember?" He asked.

"Aside from you putting a knife in my face nothing." She said, to make sure he didn't forget how crappy he'd made her feel. Again. "I don't even remember falling asleep. Did you knock me out or something? I wouldn't put it passed you."

Ah, so she had no memory of that moment of badassery? For a moment Karma was disappointed. Oh well no matter. He smiled as his interest in his new friend grew more and more. This wannabe assassin was indeed a lot more than met the eye. At least now he knew why the Shiota clan was keeping her around. She was like a perfectly disguised secret weapon.

"I swear I didn't do anything. Are you sure you're not narcoleptic?"

"I am not!" She let out, annoyed by how he was dodging the question. "You were there, you tell me!"

"Well... Can you answer a question first?"

"Seriously?"

"You want to know if it's my fault don't you? What's the black glove for in your bag?" He asked.

She frowned and sighed. "You looked through my stuff again didn't you? The black gloves are my neutralizers. One has paralytic needles in the fingers and the other, a taser charger in the palm."

"Oh so that's what it does..."

"So it was your fault? Karma!"

"I'm joking, I'm joking. Seriously though. I have no idea why you suddenly decided to take a nap." He lied.

As he expected she didn't question his truth and got lost in her own thoughts trying to understand what could have happened to her. What a fool. She had absolutely no clue of what she was capable of. But what Karma was very curious about the most was what triggered the dormant Nagisa to appear. She'd executed the mission without so much as one mistake, doing exactly what he'd described : taking out the guards without killing them and as quietly as possible. And she had said that an order had been given. But what was the actual trigger? The order could only be part of it. Otherwise, she'd have 'awaken' dozens of time since they'd met. So the red head was searching his memories to remember that moment. Every word he'd say to her since then.

"What are you doing by the way?" She asked pulling him out of his daydream.

"Hmm? What we came here for shorty. I'm canceling the jamming. You were out for ten minutes at most, but I didn't feel like shaking you awake so..."

"You really just do things whenever you want, don't you?" Let out the bluenette.

"Whenever I get the opportunity, yes. I warned you Shorty." He pulled his eyes from the screen to wink at her. "Tell me something. If you knew that this was how our little partnership was going to go, would you still have asked me to help?"

She hesitated before answering. "I don't know..."

He smirked at her before turning back to the screen and pressing a button. "There. Communications are back on. But you might want to hurry. I'm pretty sure they'll notice quickly."

"Right."

The assassin reached for her little black bag that Karma had tossed on another chair. Nagisa grabbed her phone and quickly dialed her mother's number. The phone rang and the girl took a couple of deep breaths, preparing herself for the discussion.

" _Who is it?"_ Asked the voice of the boss of the Shiota clan.

Nagisa felt her insides tremble for a second. "I-it's me, boss." Under no circumstances was she aloud to call her 'mother' on the phone. "Mission accomplished."

" _You finished? Did you recuperate the key?"_

"Yes, boss. But there were … complications. Something else is going on here and..."

" _That's none of your concern. Stay put until I call you back."_

"But mother!" She said louder, afraid that the woman would hang up. "There's a huge storm and the people here are jamming the communications. I ..."

" _Silence."_ Ordered the head without even raising her voice and obtaining the immediate attention of her daughter. _"We'll find you. Stay put."_

"Yes ma'am."

The communication ended without so much as a goodbye or a final thought. Nagisa hadn't realized how stressful that had been until she felt her heart beating so fast she thought it would escape her chest.

"I knew there was something off about you." Said Karma.

"What?"

"You're the Head's kid? No wonder you don't get a break. It really mustn't help that you're that bad at the family life must really have sucked being in the shadow of your mom."

The way he was saying it was a subtle as being hit by a bus in the face. She would've gotten angry if they weren't in the middle of something important and if it was any other subject. She didn't like to talk about her life. Especially not to the guy who seemed to be able to get a rise out of her on things she thought she'd become immune to.

"I don't want to talk about this." Insisted Nagisa. "Let's go find Mr Karasuma."

Thank heaven Karma didn't push the subject which was surprising coming from the red devil. Nagisa realized that she was thinking of him as if she'd known him for a long time. It was weird really. She knew nothing about him.

'I guess that's what happens when you only have one person around.' She thought.

As they stepped out of the the security room, the young assassin noticed the unconscious people on the floor. She found herself impressed by Karma's skill. He was really good if he took out those three plus the ones inside the security room so fast. An object glittered in the moonlight and caught her attention. Her eyes fell on the needle that was sticking out of one of the guard's neck. It didn't take her long to make out what it was.

'Karma used my glove? So he already knew what it does. Really, that guy! Did he ask me just to mess with me? Or did he really put me to sleep?'

She glanced behind herself to see the red head walking a few steps behind. Bringing her hand to her nape, she felt her skin searching for the trace of needle. At the same time, her mind engaged in deep thought. Why in the world would Karma put her to sleep? He had strictly no reason to. If he wanted to take something from her, he easily could've overpowered her, she was sure of it. What exactly had happened? And she couldn't remember anything from just before? There was no way the red head would give her a straight answer.

"Hey Nagisa." Called out the devil.

"Yeah?"

"Why don't you run away with me?"

She froze on the spot and blank, wondering if she was hallucinating. As Karma didn't say anything else, she turned around to face him. The storm was still raging outside and the occasional lighting strike lit the dark hallway they were in. He was looking at her with his happy-go-lucky smile, hands in his pockets, waiting for an answer.

"Huh?"

"I already got that you don't have the capacities to do it. Either that or you're too chicken to do it yourself. So why don't you come with me when we're done with this fiasco? I'm nifty so I can figure something out. I'll protect you. What do you say shorty?"

Twice. He'd said it twice. This wasn't a hallucination. Nagisa's mind went blank. What was she suppose to answer? Not lying to herself, she had thoughts of running away her entire life. But the one time she'd attempted it, her mother had kept her locked up for days and then brought _that guy_ to discipline her. And the time she'd spent with him haunted her nightmares to this very day. Her mother's angry face came to mind and sent shivers down her spine. And she was unable to process anything else. That face was too much. Enough to make her heart speed up. She was brought back to reality when Karma flicked her on the forehead.

"Ow!"

"Psych! Did you think I was serious? Hahaha! I know you're not too bright but not even you wouldn't just take off with a stranger. Especially not someone like me."

Karma walked passed her. And again Nagisa felt a wave of disappointment. Of course it was a joke. She felt stupid for even considering that he was being serious. But for a moment, she imagined what it would be like to be away from everything. Away from the clan and the business of assassination. To have a friend on a regular basis... Was she allowed to hope for better days? A better life like this?

"You coming Shorty?" Called out the red head.

"Coming." She said, abandoning her thoughts and following Karma.

* * *

Once the two returned to Karasuma's room, they found the government agent ending a conversation on the phone. He turned off his device and turned to Karma and Nagisa.

"Great work you two."

"Don't thank us." Said Karma. "They'll jam the communications again the second they realize it's been deactivated. And then they'll come after us. Who were you talking to by the way?"

"I called homeland. They can't do anything with that storm, but the instant it's over they'll block the entire island to keep anyone from escaping. They said the weather should calm down starting tomorrow."

"You sure are efficient, Mr Karasuma." Said Karma after whistling in admiration.

"It's my job, kid." Replied the man before turning to Nagisa. "Did you manage to contact your clan?"

"Yeah. The Head ordered me to stay put and not get involved in that business. Wait did you tell homeland about me?" She asked suddenly panicked.

"Relax Nagisa. I didn't mention you or the clan. I've been dealing with you for a long time. Dragging you into this business would not only waste time, but also compromise our relations for work in the future. The Head won't even have to know you were involved."

The bluenette sighed in relief. "Thank you."

Karma looked around the room thinking it was very quiet and then asked. "Speaking of people we'd rather not hear from, where's Miss Bitch?"

"She went to gain some information on the new staff. To see if we can identify that client."

"Are you sure she'll be alright?" Asked Karma. "I'm not sure I'd trust her to cut a tomato without injuring herself."

"She may be a pain in the ass, but Irina Jelavic is one of the best undercover assassins in the world. Secret service have been trying to recruit her forever."

'Really?' Thought Nagisa, thinking of the overdramatic and overbearing woman. 'She naturally hides her skills well then.'

Speak of the devil. Someone knocked on the door and the foreign woman entered. "These guys are clearly not the staff. They're holding their tongue pretty well and I couldn't push the subject without risking getting suspicious."

"I see. Too bad. We'll have to find something else." Karasuma grabbed his chin and thought for a minute. "Nagisa, how did they get here?"

"I didn't see them arrive. Lovro came with two choppers. I saw them take the trunks out of them on the roof. And when they switched places with the staff, I was outside. So I don't know if they came from the outside or inside."

"So." Said Irina. "What should out next move be? I mean you've already signaled them so homeland will jump them the moment the storm calms down. We should stay put."

"My boss should call me soon and give us instructions." He turned to Nagisa and Irina. "What I'd like you two to do is give me more details. As much as you can remember and..."

A vibrating phone interrupted him and Karma took his phone out of his pocket. "Oops. Sorry, gotta take this. Nagisa'll fill me in after."

The red head stepped outside in the hallway as Karasuma followed him with his eyes. Shady indeed, this boy was. But now was not the time to regret past decisions. The government agent turned to the two ladies of the room to continue their conversation.

* * *

Meanwhile the red head's smile disappeared as he leaned against the wall far in the dark hallway and answered the phone. "Yeah?"

The next thing he knew, he received a quick but painful electrical discharge coming from the necklace around his neck to the point of falling down on one knee, grunting in pain. He panted a bit and then a half smile appeared on his face as he brought his phone to his ear again. "You're jumpy. What's up with you?"

" _What the hell are you playing at Akabane?"_ Growled the voice, clearly angry on the other side of the line.

"Sorry boss. Don't know what you're talking about."

" _Don't play dumb!"_ Shouted the voice. _"What happened in the security room?"_

"Oh you already know about that? Well I was bored and there was nothing to do, so I thought I'd unjam communications and prank call people on the main land. It's not like I compromised your business, why are you so pissed?"

" _I'm tired of these games mutt. First you let Lovro escape and now you play around? Enough bullshit. I'm not putting up with your crap anymore."_

A smirk and a murderous look made their way to Karma's face and he answered very calmly, taunting the man on the other side. "Please. As if my fun was worth blowing my head off and loosing your best dog. I dare you, wuss. Your daddy would."

An enraged growl on the other side and a second stronger discharge, satisfied the red devil who knew he'd struck a nerve. So much that he didn't even scream. No way was he giving his boss the satisfaction.

" _This is the last straw, Akabane. Find the government snoops and get rid of them. And don't pretend you don't have a clue, you probably already figured out who they are. Then I want you to go after that rat and get that bottle back. You have six hours. We leave after that. Screw with me one more time and you go."_

His phone beeped, indicating that the call had ended. Karma pulled the phone away from his ear and looked at it.

"Sorry Nagisa. Time's up."

* * *

"It's a good thing Mr Karasuma reminded me about food. Karma must be starving too."

Nagisa was making her way back to the government agent's room after having stolen supplies from the kitchen. She hadn't eaten since that breakfast with Karma and that was a while ago. Karasuma had reminded her of it and she'd gone to the kitchen to steal food for herself, the red head and the two adults. Still, not even food could stop her from thinking about her sudden falling-asleep-out-of-nowhere moment. Last time she checked, she wasn't narcoleptic or have any kind of illness that could cause that. So if she was right and Karma really was the one responsible, why did he do it?

'If he'd done it just to mess with me, he would've rubbed it in my face.'

As she approached Karasuma's room, she saw that the door was wide open and in the middle of the hallway staring at the dark sky, was the red head. She picked up the pace.

"Karma?" She called out.

But Nagisa suddenly froze in place. There it was. That weird sensation again. The one she felt whenever she was faced with death. It was so strong that she felt goosebumps appear all over her skin. What was going on? Her eyes searched for the problem and quickly located it. Karma's hand... was holding a knife covered in blood again. But this one wasn't dry. It was dripping on the ground. The bluenette's eyes followed the trail holding her breath and saw that it led straight into the government agent's room.

Her eyes widened in horror and she dropped everything she was holding before running towards the room. Inside, Karasuma and Irina were on the ground... bathing in a pool of their own blood. Nagisa gulped loudly before stepping away from the door and turning slowly towards the boy who was still looking out the window. This couldn't be. This had to be a nightmare. She wanted to ask him for an explanation but no words came out of her mouth although her mind was screaming.

'What have you done?'

The red head sighed before speaking. "I warned you Nagisa. You should have listened to me. You decided to take the risk."

He turned around to face her. His eyes were those of a wolf. And he had that same psycho smile stretched out across his face. "Time's up Shorty. I'm not on your side anymore."

The atmosphere around her was similarly threatening as that time her mother had abandoned her a week in a forest and she'd ended up being surrounded by a pack of wolves. In that moment, she couldn't even remember how she survived as she clearly knew one of the beasts had bitten her. She wanted to back up some more but her body refused to obey her.

"Karma...why?"

"Well might as well tell you. It's an order from my master."

"M-master?"

"Yep. You've seen my collar haven't you? I'm a dog on a leash and my pain in the ass of a master's finally ordered me to deal with you. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad I got to play with you. It was fun while it lasted."

He didn't make a single move to get closer to her, but at every word he spoke, the fear intensified in her system and she felt her heart accelerate like never before. Instantly, the techniques she'd been taught to remain calm in any given situation escaped her reflexes as the bluenette was unable to process what was happening.

"The game's over now but what do you say we play one more round? I'll give you a head start. Run fast and far Nagisa. Like you got the devil on your tail."

He still didn't make a step forward. Lightening stroke, lightning the hallway and rendering his face even more terrifying. But he was speaking as if he was truly enjoying himself. "Go, shorty. I'll even give you a head start."

"Karma... I don't get it..." She said her voice shaking, as she was praying that this wasn't real. "What's happening?"

His smile got wider and there was even a hint of pity in his eyes. He reached for something in one of his pockets and took out what looked like a small syringe. He brought it up to his neck and injected it in himself. One second later, he dropped the medical tool that shattered on the ground and his entire body contracted and he grunted loudly. He bended in two, holding his head and veins popped out on his neck and his arms. His eyes that Nagisa thought shinny before flashed up like fires in the night. His body seemed to stretch out as if his limbs and his back suddenly grew. His teeth stretched out to become fangs, his nails turned to claws... But that wasn't all ; his forearms got covered in scale like features as well as his neck. The young assassin watched as a monster was being born in front of her. That thing took deep breath before letting out a chuckle that resonated in the hallway.

"Hahaha. Hurts like a bitch every time."

It was still his voice. That thing really was Karma. His yellow wolf eyes turned to her, the paralyzed prey. He'd seen that look before. Anyone who he'd been ordered to hunt had that same look on their face. Intense fear mixed with confusion.

"Run." He said that his voice choked as if he was trying to contain something inside. "Two minutes is about the maximum I can give you. Come on Nagisa, run! HAHAHAHAHAHA!"

As if her body was obeying his voice only now, Nagisa turned heels and dashed away as fast as she could, in a state of complete panic as his crazy laughter filled the entire hallway.

* * *

 **Oh oh... Looks like our dear Nagi's in** **trouble! What exactly is Karma? And are we finally going to find out what's really going on here?**

 **PLEASE REVIEW**


	9. Prey

**Hi guys! A thousand apologies for the long break, it was totally my fault I'm sorry. But I'm back and hope you'll enjoy this chapter!**

* * *

Her heavy panting resonated in the halls as she ran. The muscles in her legs were burning her from over-exhaustion and despite that, she refused to slow down. Fear was in control now. Although she thought she had learned to control it. In any situation, even life threatening ones. Because if she showed fear, then she was weak and her mother was furious. She'd learned. She'd beat it into her own system. So why? Why was she letting that fear that she'd learn to hide so well was now control her so much? And not just her body. While she was running away with all her might, her mind was also racing, desperately trying to get a hold of the situation.

'Why? Why was this happening?'

He'd warned her, hadn't he? He'd warned her that he wouldn't be able to be her ally for long. Why couldn't she have seen past that? She had believed... she had wanted to believe in him. In this! For once she'd felt like there was someone she could relax with. Relying on him had been a breath of fresh air in her chocking life. Only to end up poisoning her. All she could think about now, was the monster she'd saw rise before her eyes. Nagisa forgot about the surveillance cameras. About the mercenaries out for her skin. About the people of the hotel, oblivious to what was going on. The only thing that mattered now was getting away.

The young assassin dashed down the hallway and then the stairs until she reached the first floor. Guests and staff looked at the girl running by with strange faces. Glancing over her shoulder from time to time to make sure the monster wasn't following her, the bluenette ignored everything else and wanted only one thing : get the hell out of here. She crossed the lobby and made her way outside. If she hadn't been so scared, maybe she would have noticed the lack of security guards in the entrance. But not even the heavy rain hitting her bare skin like millions of tiny needles and drenching her clothes could slow her down. The lightening striking the sea and the thunder rumbling after only served to intensify the anxiety within. Nagisa slipped more than once on the muddy trails leading to the forest of the island. She couldn't think of a better hiding spot on this cursed prison. At least the best according to her panicking mind. Her body was just not listening to her.

Her legs finally gave in and she crashed down on the ground, scratching her knees. She looked behind her but the only roaring she heard was the wind. She pushed herself up to her feet and leaned her back against a tree, panting to catch her breath. In the dead of night, the only lighting she had was the one provided by the lightening striking. The cold finally caught up to her but it was the least of her worry.

"I thought you'd be more of a challenge than that, Shorty." Whispered a deep voice near her.

Her heart nearly stopped in her chest and she looked up. Standing on higher ground next to her tree was the red devil. He still had that huge smile and his eyes were shinning brighter than anything else in the night. Backing away, Nagisa tripped on her own feet and landed on her butt. That didn't keep her from scurrying further away.

"Then again, I shouldn't blame you." Continued the beast man, jumping from his high spot and landing a few meters from her. "That's what they teach you in your clan isn't it? When the enemy's too strong, abort mission."

She stared at him from her spot on the cold and muddy floor. Her shivering only got more intense when he narrowed his eyes on her. "Sorry Nagisa. But there's no retreat option this time."

Karma, if that was still him, stood there for a moment looking at her, contemplating her state. She'd lost it all. The control of the situation had slipped from her hands as well as her self-control. Everything she'd learned since she was born was suddenly inexistent in her head. What an amateur. She reminded him of a little mouse facing a cat for the first time.

"Wha-what are you?" She let out, her voice barely more than a whisper.

"It's obvious isn't it? I'm a monster." He replied slowly, his voice tainted with sadness suddenly. "Get up Shorty."

As if he commanded her, she got back on her feet, her legs still shaking like the leaves in the stormy wind. Lightening struck, illuminating his crazy face. "Did you like it Nagisa? Our little game? Pretending like we were friends for a while was fun. I enjoyed it, honestly. How about you?"

"I...I..." Was all she was capable of saying.

He laughed. "Hahahaha! Look at you! You're even more pathetic than before! Do I scare you that much? You know, standing still is a sure way for a prey to get killed on a hunt."

His words weren't helping her already confused mind."H-hunt?"

"That's right Shorty." He said, his smile widening. "You're my prey and if you don't do anything...you'll die."

She'd been threatened with death so many times before. Why was this time different? Why did her heart throb more and more painfully at every word he said? Why did it hurt so much more than with the Clan?

"Fight or flight Nagisa. Pick one quick."

He took a step forward, and, jumping, she moved a foot to take one back. "Wrong move."

Before she could even take another breath, he was in front of her. The next thing she knew, his fist collided violently with her stomach, ejecting the air in her lungs. A strong dizziness invaded her head and soon after, darkness engulfed her. She fell face first onto the ground, and the fake smile the red devil had been showing all this time finally faded.

"I'm sorry Shorty." He muttered. "You drew the short straw."

Suddenly, he brought his hand to his chest when waves of pain shot through it. Quickly he opened and searched the small black bag on the girl's back and pulled out the white bottle. Taking three pills out of it, he immediately swallowed them and awaited, panting and sweating that the pain went away. When it did, the teen took a deep breath before shoving the bottle in his pocket and turning to the assassin. He could just leave her here. Either she'd freeze to death or lightening would end up hitting a tree nearby. Or she'd survive and wait for her clan to pick her up. And she'd go back to being the shadow of her family. The hidden weapon that never knew just how much she was worth.

Karma then picked up the sleeping girl in his arm. That look of defeat was still on her face even though there was no consciousness. At least the rain had washed away the blood. Drenched, he walked back to the hotel and under the stunned gazes of the guests, headed for the elevators and then through the hallways of the last floor. The door of the room where his boss was was open. He entered, making everyone freeze briefly.

"What is that?" Said Asano junior getting closer. "I thought I told you to deal with everyone."

"And you should be glad I didn't. " Explained the boy, his cheeky attitude back on. "I don't think sending this one to the other side is a good idea, boss. Wait until you see her ID..."

The boss froze when he got a closer look at the girl. "No need. I know exactly who this is. What the hell is she doing here?"

'Oh, so Asano junior knows the Shiota clan?' Thought the red devil. 'Guess I shouldn't be surprised. _They_ have a history with them.'

"She's our rat." Said Grip. "That's definitely the kid who stabbed me. Why is she a problem boss?"

"She's a member of the Shiota Clan." Explained Karma.

"Damn it all!" Cursed the purple eyed young man.

Another mercenary named Smog stepped forward. "We could just leave her here, unarmed."

"Do you sniff that poison gas you carry around, Smog?" Taunted the red devil, a grin on his face. "She's been spying on us since the beginning. If you want your secret operation to remain, well, secret, we can't let info leak away like that."

"Then it's easy." Said Gastro pointing his gun at her head. "We go with our first solution."

Karma's insides tightened but he showed no change on the surface. "Hate to burst your bubble, gun head, but then we leave the body of the Head's kid for the Shiota Clan to find and wait for them to come murder us in our sleep."

The three mercenaries looked at each other, getting the difficult situation they were in. Even if she wasn't the child of the Head, the Shiota clan never let the murders of their own unsolved or unpunished.

"We're taking her with us." Said Asano. "I'll personally take care of the matter. The rest of you focus on your job. We're leaving asap."

"Yes boss." They replied in unison before returning to their task of transporting the metal trunks out of the room.

"Akabane, go change and get your stuff. And no more screwing around. I want you back here in fifteen. One minute late and your head goes."

"And her?"

"Leave her here." He said pointing to one of the couches of the room. "I'll give her a dose of sleeping gas just so we're safe."

The red devil did as he was told and exited the room, letting no signs of unease show. After he left, Gakushu wondered why the arrogant mutt was suddenly so quiet. Getting a rise out of him seemed to be his favorite past time. But he didn't linger on that thought and turned his attention to the couch. Clenching his teeth, he tried to gather his thoughts as he sprayed more sleeping gas on her face that she inhaled. The Shiota Clan just had to show their noses here and now, didn't they? No matter, he couldn't see any better solution. If the operation was to go smoothly, then this will have to be dealt with with extreme care. He noticed that she was just as drenched as Karma and was shivering. Letting her catch pneumonia was not an option either. There would have to be as little damage as possible. Scanning the room, Asano junior found nothing of use. It was a meeting room after all. So he did the only thing he could and took off his jacket before covering her in it.

"This is going to be one royal pain in my ass." He growled to himself.

* * *

Lightening struck again. It was deep in the night already, so most of the guests were asleep and the staff, somnolent at best. So it was no surprise that no one really noticed him when he entered the lounge. Even if he hadn't been a professional, he was sure he could've passed without being noticed by them. They looked about as reactive as sloths. Wearing a long black coat and a hood to hide his face, the shadow made his way through the lounge fairly easily until he reached the front desk. Only one woman was there. It made sense, they weren't expecting new guests anytime soon with this storm. Perfect. The man pulled a small phial containing whisky and rinsed his mouth with it before spitting it out in a nearby flower pot. He appreciated a good drink as much as the next guy, but never during the job. The point was to have foul breath. Then, slowly he tumbled his way to the front desk and sprawled over it, scarring the woman.

"Oh, my! Are you alright?" She asked concerned.

"I'm fine, 'on't worry..." He said before hiccuping. "M'sorry to trouble you bu... I can't remember where m'room is..."

"What's your name Sir?"

"Natsuki...Shirota... Arrived on the fourth..." He said, stating the fake name of the Shiota runt, purposely dragging his speech.

After checking on the computer and making a quick phone call, the woman turned back to the man. "My colleague is on his way to help you to your room, Sir. I'm sorry for the wait."

Looking up a her, the shadow smiled. "You an...angel."

The woman slightly blushed before her colleague arrived and helped the man up the elevator to the fifth floor. There as he was about to grab his master key, he saw the busted lock on the door. "What the..."

He never finished that sentence. A hand collided with the back of his neck and before he could fall, the man caught him and dragged him inside the room, shutting the door behind them. "Now. Let's see what I can find here."

Going around the room, he saw it all. The open window by which the rain entered the suitcase. The slightly wrinkled bed where someone had sat briefly. Crouching down, he scratched the carpet and his nail picked up traces of purple dust.

"Shiota home made sleeping gas." He stated, as he wiped his finger. "Better if I don't accidentally knock myself out."

Then he made his way to the open suitcase. One of the inner layers had been opened with a knife. This was probably where the disk had been hidden. Slipping his hand in the opening, he searched a bit further in for what he knew was also there. Quickly enough, he pulled out the coin sized tracking device and put it in his own pocket. It would come in handy. Then he turned his attention to the window. Knowing that there were cameras everywhere on the lower floors, logically the girl had tried to climb out after knocking out whoever had trespassed in her room.

"How soft hearted." He said, chuckling at the lack of blood or body. "She didn't even injure her assailant."

With that he stepped out the window and proceeded to climb up, following the traces of shoe on the edge of the windows. He climbed up, imagining he was five foot tall. The storm raged, the wind blew, the rain hit his face. But the weather was no match for the man dubbed the Grim Reaper by his peers. So he kept climbing against rain and wind, that smile never leaving his face. He stopped when he saw a strand of blue hair stuck in a window.

And like so, the God of Death made his way through the hotel, going all the way up to the final floor, following the young assassin's trail. The bodies he found there more than spoke for themselves. The girl had encountered trouble and tried to bite off more than she could chew. The interesting part was the trail of blood he found in the hallway. Following that to a staff elevator, it led him back down to the first floor. There, he entered a room with blood on the handle, with the master card he'd stolen and found Lovro, the phantom smuggler in a coma. But the smell of perfume in the air clearly belonged to a woman. So he searched further, keeping his eye out for new traces of blood which he found a few rooms away. This time, the drops were going from the window to inside the room. So, again he unlocked the door and entered. Two people were on the floor, in pools of their own red. But the moment he stepped in, he could tell they were alive. Flipping both of them over he was surprised at the kind of wounds they had.

"Impressive." He muttered. "Hurt enough to make it very gruesome, but not kill. Only healthy and strong people survive this kind of blood loss. It looks like little Nagisa's sleep mode is more efficient then I thought."

He took back his words when he saw that the wounds looked like scratch marks. Lady Shiota had said nothing about Nagisa using a weapon that could make this kind of wound. Or about her growing claws. This was curious. And his trail ended here. Meaning the quickest way to get answers was to wait for these two to wake up and talk. But that wasn't going to happen as long as nothing was done about their wounds. A sigh escaped his mouth. He really didn't like interacting with people that had nothing to do with his job, but he didn't seem to have a choice this time.

'Oh well.' He thought. 'If push comes to shove, I'll just kill them.'

With that, proceeded to stop the bleeding of the two people and laid them both down on the bed.

"It would be faster if I could just give them a transfusion but I don't have the material. Or know what their blood type is. Guess I'll just have to wait."

Keeping the lights off, the God of Death looked around the room and looked through the black bags. Inside, he found the disk of the Shiota Clan. It seemed Nagisa hadn't lied to Lady Shiota. This man was the government contact. He sighed again. Things were getting much harder. If he had to show his face to this man, his rep and his work would suffer. Suddenly, he found an unopened envelop on the desk of the room.

 _Karasuma_

Ah, so this man was none other than the infamous Tadaomi Karasuma of National Security? Curious, he opened it. On a small sheet of paper, there was just a couple of coordinates and the next few words. _She's with me. Bring lots of guns._ Things were getting stranger and stranger.

"It looks like I'm not going to get bored with this affair."

Taking out a burner phone, the man dialed a number. _"Who is it?"_ Asked a monotone voice.

"Your humble servant, Lady Shiota." He replied, still amused at how cold that woman was even on the phone. "It seems our deal is getting slightly more complicated?"

" _Do you actually expect me to believe a storm scared you?"_

"I am on the island, the storm is not the problem. But I'm afraid something has gone wrong with your daughter's transaction."

" _Speak clearly, Grim Reaper."_ Ordered the assassin, getting impatient.

"She's been kidnapped by a third party. And if I believe my latest hint, they're no longer here."

A long silence followed on the other side of the line, and the man could almost feel the phone freeze in his hand. "Lady Shiota?"

" _Find her."_ Ordered the Head with a low voice dripping with anger and murder intent. _"I don't care what it takes. Find her and kill anyone that gets in the way."_

So that's what it took to get a reaction out of the Shiota Clan's head? Steal her most secret and strongest weapon. His smile widened and a spark of excitement glittered in his eyes for a moment. "Your wish is my command, my Lady."

" _Keep me updated."_

With that he ended the code and turned to the two people recuperating on the bed. "Now, how can I extract some info while staying incognito?"

Despite his words, he already had an answer. His smile never leaving his face, the God of Death flipped open a freshly sharpened switch blade.

* * *

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	10. Cage and guard dogs

**How do I say this... I'm so sorry for the tardiness your guys. I take forever to update this** **story because, well, I'm having trouble sorting out what I want to do with it exactly. I have a general idea, but the details are a pain in my... yeah. So again, sorry. I hope I can pick up the pace more regularly from now on.**

 **In the meantime, I hope you enjoy the new chapter!**

* * *

The first thing Nagisa felt was her aching back. Like when you stay slumped for too long while sitting on the ground. Slowly, she opened her eyes only to discover that she couldn't see anything. A blindfold made sure of that. Her brain felt like jello. What had happened? Oh, right. She'd been attacked by a monster. Wherever she was, it was dark, she could tell. Call it the sixth sense of the assassin. Her clothes were dry now, but the goosebumps told her that it was too cold to be wearing a skirt and short sleeves. Judging from her position, she was in a chair. And apparently handcuffed to it. Instinctively, the short girl tried to wiggle to reach her bracelets.

"If you're looking for your hooks, don't bother," said a familiar voice, making her jump. "Everything was taken from you. Well, I took everything from you."

She didn't reply, bitting her lips together. She knew it was him.

"Giving me the silent treatment?" He laughed. It was impossible to tell if it was amusement or faking. "Are you mad at me, Shorty?"

"..."

"Nothing, huh? Are you trying to challenge me, Nagisa? Cause I'm game, really."

She heard him stand up and footsteps getting closer. She flinched when she felt his fingers touch her face, and he chuckled again. But instead of saying anything, he grabbed the blindfold and pulled it off her face. But even after having her eyes open, she looked down, not wanting to look him in the eyes. Looking at his feet was hard enough.

"What's wrong? Something on my feet? Or are you scared of looking me in the eye?"

She gulped, not sure she could speak. "Are you... are you still that thing?"

"Of course. Just because I shift back, it doesn't make me any less of a monster, you know?"

Shifting back? So she had her answer. Slowly, she looked up and met eyes with the red devil. No fangs, no claws. But his eyes seemed as bright as ever in the dark. Looking around, she saw that she was in some sort of office. The blinds of the giant windows were closed. There was a desk, on one side, a couple of book shelves and on the other, couches and a low table. Everything was perfectly in place, like someone with OCD had cleaned the place and set everything. It reminded her of that place. The one where _he_ taught her. Just the thought of it made her start shaking again.

"What's the matter, Nagisa?" said Karma, as a sneaky smirk made it's way to his face. "You look so nervous. Are you scared of me?"

She didn't want to talk to him, but anything was better than thinking about _that_. "Why didn't you kill me?"

He chuckled, just like before. "Do you want to die that badly?" Since she didn't reply, he continued. "I didn't do it cause I didn't want to. I like you, remember. Better warn you though, if the boss orders me to explicitly, I won't have a choice. Don't look at me like that, it won't be anything personal."

"What are you?"

"A monster, what else?"

"Were you always a monster?"

He laughed. A clear laugh that resonated in the room, but that screamed anything but amusement. "D'you think I'm crazy? Are you wondering what could've happened to me to make me like this? Sorry to disappoint, but I've always been like this. The experiments didn't change a thing about who I was on the inside. Even before that, my parents thought I had a couple of screw loose too. Gotta admit, I wasn't the easiest of kids. Oh well. Now they're rid of me, good for them."

His parents were still alive? How the hell did a fifteen year old with parents get involved in something like this? She was an exception, being born into a clan of assassins. Then, she realized what else he'd said.

"You said experiments?"

"Yep," he said, sitting on the desk and facing her. "I thought that since I'm already a freak on the inside, why not become one on the outside? Makes it easier for people to understand."

She couldn't believe what she was hearing. "You... chose to become like this?"

"Let's just say I knew that I was being conned when I signed up. But hey, that's what you do when you decide to take a risk. So I gave my body to science. Extremely illegal and experimental science."

She stared at him, eyes wide with pure shock. "What were you thinking?"

"That's the thing, Shorty. I was tired of thinking."

Tired of thinking? Didn't that sound familiar? A swarm of images invaded Nagisa's mind without warning. Those memories of her as a child that she never thought about. Back when she didn't really understand why her mother was angry at her and she whacked her brain trying to make the Head of the clan smile. Somewhere along the way, she realized that she just wasn't good enough at this game. And she'd stopped trying and just did whatever she was told. But that still, never was good enough. Maybe it was also then that she'd stopped thinking about what her own feelings and thoughts were. She bit her lip, chasing the images from her mind with new thoughts.

"Where are we?" she asked.

"No can say," immediately replied the red head. "The boss might blow my head off if I tell you."

"I didn't take you as the type to just do whatever he's told..." she said.

"Yeah well, shit happens to everyone," he replied, shrugging. "For you, it came in the form of being born in the Shiota clan and being the worst assassin ever. For me, it was meeting the wrong people and letting them put that thing on me."

He pointed to his chocker. "What is it?" she asked, though she was pretty certain of the answer.

"A low amplitude bomb. Still plenty enough to blow my head off." He placed his hands behind his head and laid down on the desk, letting his legs hang.

Just how can someone be this relaxed with death literally at their neck? She had a hard time believing that Karma would just leave it alone. "Can't you..."

"It's equipped with highly sensitive motion sensors," he explained interrupting. "If I try removing it, bang. But thanks for worrying 'bout me. It warms my stone heart."

He was mocking her again, like nothing had happened. But it had happened. She'd seen what he turned into. That thing that looked like it jumped out of a horror movie. Yet she still had so much trouble believing it. The fangs, the claws, the scale like pattern on his arms and neck, the blood dripping from his hands... blood. Her heart skipped a beat when she remembered and her mouth hung open. Sensing her silence, the red devil sat up and threw her a curious look. It tok everything she had to ask.

"W-why did you attack Mr Karasuma and Miss Irina?"

He raised an eyebrow, before his smile came back. "Because I was ordered to. Why else? Considering I was helping you snoop in my own bosses business, it's a miracle I'm still kicking."

"Did you... really kill them?"

His eyes narrowed on her, and though he still wore that smile, he spoke with that low voice, hiding something dangerous behind it. "Why do you care? Karasuma was your old lady's business partner, and Miss Bitch was nothing to you. Why does it matter that they're gone? Why to you, an assassin?"

On this point at least, she had always agreed with her clan; unnecessary kill was both wasteful and disgraceful. But the way he looked at her made her feel like a tone of cement had been dumped on her shoulders, and she averted her eyes, not wanting to meet his glare. But shivers travelled down her spine even before he spoke.

"You know, you really piss me off."

"What?"

She looked up and saw that he wasn't smiling anymore and her insides froze when he got off the desk and approached. "Whenever it comes to you, you go mute. Are you really just an empty shell?"

"I... I..."

The next thing she knew, a clawed hand cupped her face and made her wince in pain as it dug in her skin. Karma brought her fear struck face up to look at his now bright eyes. Cold sweat smeared her neck and that sadistic smile was back. "You know, if you bore me, I might have no use for you anymore," he said, almost whispering. "Come on, Shorty. I thought we had a good thing going."

Suddenly, the door slammed open. The figure in the dark was indistinguishable, but the instant he spoke, Nagisa's eyes widened in shock.

"What the hell do you think you're doing Akabane?"

Karma sighed and muttered something about a killjoy before releasing her and turning to his both and flashing him with his fake smile. "Nothing boss. Me and the Shorty were getting to know each other a bit better. Right, Miss Shiota?"

"Don't touch her," ordered the young man before turning on the lights.

Her ears hadn't betrayed her. Without warning her entire body started trembling. What did that mean for her? Had he been the one orchestrating all of this? Worst, had he known that she would be there as well? Had this all gone hand in hand with her mother's plan? Had the Head made another deal with him? By the time he was in front of her, the young assassin had stopped breathing. But unlike Karma, anger showed clearly on his face.

"G-Gakushu..."

"Hello, Nagisa," he replied politely, without showing the slightest hint of relaxing. "It's been a while."

"No," said Karma, in disbelief. "You two know each other? HAHAHA! This is too good! Who knew the heirs of the Shiota Clan and the Asano Faction had met? Can you say coincidence or what?"

"Shut up, Akabane!" Ordered the strawberry blond, before turning back to the frozen girl. "What were you doing on the island Nagisa?"

How in the world was she supposed to answer that? Spilling to Karma was one thing, but to Gakushu, the consequences would be disastrous. The Asano Faction and Shiota Clan had worked together in the past, but generally speaking they hated each other and if they remained polite up-front, they never missed a chance to sucker punch if they were competing on the same business. Which was it this time? She suddenly felt the urge to slap herself. She just had to meddle in a business that wasn't her own. If only she could go back and undo everything! In any case, whatever she told him, _he_ would hear it as well. If she talked, her mother would kill her. But if she didn't, that guy would make her.

Her silence annoyed her interrogator who grabbed her by the collar, pulling her towards him. "Don't make me ask again. Answer me, what do you know?"

"Relax boss," said Karma. "She was here for an info exchange, not spy on your little business."

"That's what she told you?"

"Yep. And I'm pretty sure I would've been able to tell if she was lying."

Gakushu released her and looked back and forth at the two. "Exactly when did she tell you that?"

"Just now before you entered the room," he lied.

"Why tell you and not me?"

"Must be my godly charisma," Said Karma shrugging. "Anyone can tell I'm handsomer than you. Or I'm just better at persuading."

The young Asano clenched his teeth before turning back to his prisoner. "Who was your contact?"

"The government snoop you asked me to off," replied Karma again. "Don't worry, I took care of that. She can vouch. She saw the whole thing."

Never taking his eyes off of her, Gakushu asked again. "What does the Head know?"

"N-Nothing."

He narrowed his eyes, and more shivers traveled up her spine. "If you're lying to me..."

"I'm not!" she shouted. "I didn't tell her anything! Just that... there were people on the island jamming the communications... I didn't know it was you until now, I swear!"

Her eyes were pleading, but Karma could tell. What she was truly afraid of wasn't this guy. No, it was something related to him in some way. And she was begging to be spared from whatever it was. Gakushu seemed unconvinced and stared at her suspiciously.

"I don't know anything about your business," she said. "Please, let me go. I won't say anything, I promise."

"You saw him, didn't you?" replied the young man, pointing at Karma with a sign of the head. "That means you saw something. You're staying here until I decide what to do with you. And if you know what's good for you, you won't do anything stupid." He turned to the red devil. "Akabane, the lab is waiting for you in an hour. Don't be late."

"Whatever you say, Boss."

The strawberry blond made his way to the door, and grabbed the handle. But just before exiting, he paused and spoke without turning around. "My father isn't here. So, don't do anything stupid."

With that he walked out, and the sound of the door closing resonated in Nagisa's head. With that, her tightened chest finally relaxed and she sighed loudly. Gakushu wasn't a friend, not even close. But he was no liar. She could trust his words.

"Oh I see now," said Karma, who she'd almost forgotten was here. "So it's Asano senior that scares the crap out of you. It all makes sense now."

"..."

"I know the man is anal about 'educating right'. If the Head was getting nowhere with you, I'm not saying that she was desperate, but I wouldn't put it pass her to ask someone to take over and try a different method with your worthless assassin butt."

"Stop..."

"And so she went to the Asano Faction for help? That's why you know junior. That's almost disgraceful for the Clan, isn't it? But you didn't make any progress with them either. That's why you have those marks on your legs."

"SHUT UP!" She shut her eyes to prevent the tears that his words had provoked to stay inside. "Please, just stop..." she begged.

Surprisingly, he got quiet, and Nagisa was at least thankful for that. But it seemed that it was too much to hold in. His words had summoned images of the past. Her life had never been an easy one, but those were the worst things she'd ever had to endure. She'd done her best to burry them deep in her heart. And all it took was a couple words from the sharp tongued devil to break the seal and bring them out. Another thing her life with the Clan had taught her, was too always keep quiet, no matter what was choking her on the inside. So though she didn't make a sound, she wasn't able to stop the stream of warm tears that leaked out of her eyes and down her face. But she didn't expect what happened next. A hand landed on her head and rubbed it gently.

"Sorry."

Just one word. One word that aloud her, for the first time in years to openly sob. She expected him to mock her after that, but he stayed quiet and kept gently messing with her hair.

* * *

The lab stank. It always did, but this time was particularly foul. Usually, Gakushu would just suck it up and ignore the stench of chemicals, but now he couldn't help but bring his hand to his nose. Even the scientists all had masks on. It wall all hands on deck as all the man in white lab vests were testing out the products that had just been brought to them. Asano junior quickly found the head of the lab and made his way to him. Unlike everyone else, he was in a full body protective white vest covering even his head and mouth.

"Yanagisawa, how are things going?" asked the young man.

"Exceedingly well. I couldn't be more pleased. This formula is incredible! Who knew someone would one day be able to crack the secret of shaping human DNA like this. It's the discovery of the century, I assure you."

"When can the tests be done?"

"We'll try them on the animals, as you've requested but I'm afraid we'll need more... fitting subjects."

"Can't you use Akabane?"

"The problem is that he's already compromised," replied the scientist. "As the only survivor of the first project, he is of course a gold mine of information. But as a test subject, he's useless."

Gakushu frowned some more. Yanagisawa was a crazy nut with a knack for human experimentation. He was wanted in a dozen countries for using people as guinea pigs. Offering him shelter was the best way to get him to work for the Faction. There was no denying that he was a genius, but he was still closely watched.

"Do what you can with the animals," ordered the teen. "We'll see after."

The scientist fake sighed. "Perhaps I could have a word with the Commander. Maybe he'd see fit to get me what I nee... ugh!"

Yanagisawa's back suddenly hit the wall, as a tight grip held his neck and limited the air supply to his lung. The young man, though several inches shorter, seemed to pack the strength of a gorilla. He threw the scientist a murderous glare. "I'm in charge here, Yanagisawa. Don't forget it. Do anything out of line, and I assure you, your lab rats will have a feast. Are we clear?"

"Crystal..." responded the slowly choking man.

Gakushu released him and he coughed violently to regain his breath, and exited the laboratory. Making his way throughout the hallway of the private facility, thoughts of his other problems annoyed him. This was his work, and there was no way in hell he was letting anyone, especially not his father, meddle in it. The heiress of the Shiota Clan came to mind. How the hell was he going to deal with that? The words that had been repeated to him all throughout his upbringing came to haunt him.

" _When faced with a problem, fighting the symptom is pointless. Eliminating the source is the only sure way."_

Clenching his teeth, he raged punched the wall before muttering. "Shut the hell up, old man! I don't need your goddamn philosophy!"

He'd walk his own path. He wouldn't be _him_. Not ever.

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